So the President of the United States was found to NOT be a Russian spy. How disappointing for so many NYT readers, who had been led to expect that the Mueller report was all that stood between DJT and jail.
Journalist Matt Taibbi, one of the only reporters out there willing to apply tough scrutiny to all sides, is right about the Mueller report: It's the mainstream news media's WMD moment.
7
@Jason B Mueller's investigation was careful and fair, an approach that Trump would never use - he just shouts lock her up. Trump has clearly stood against democracy, the rule of law, and the Constitution in his actions and staatments over the past 2 years. The people will decide if they want such a poor excuse for a president.
3
@Jason B Everything that was investigated by Mueller was the direct result of Trump’s own behavior and language. It’s a relief to know he’s not a Russian asset (at least not a conscious one) but make no mistake: all of the “hysteria” was based on Trump’s actions, and if he hates being investigated he should calm down and stop throwing bombs at himself like a mature adult. The guy is wholly the cause of his own problems.
5
Mueller-Schmueller:
Merriam-Webster defines collusion as "a secret agreement or cooperation especially for an illegal or deceitful purpose." (emphasis on the word secret)
A president who openly fails to even mention incontrovertible Russian cyber interference in a close U.S. election in 2016 and 2018, other than to say he agrees with Putin’s denials, and fails to take any steps to prevent a future Hack-and-Bot 2.0 in this country's coming 2020 election, (Why would he if it’s advantageous to his campaign?) -is not technically colluding if he does it in plain site of everyone. There’s gotta be a better word for it. (and for his supporters)
Sort of like "I could stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn't lose voters."
For Trump:As long as it's in plain site, it doesn't count...
1
Trump has a lot of enemies, and trust me, none of them are in politics.
1
Trump is neither innocent nor is he guilty of collusion/conspiring with Russians. Why? Because he was not on TRIAL. This INVESTIGATION was undertaken because of Russian election interference combined with Trump's easy ways with Russians and his evasive talk and shifty actions, i.e. firing Comey to get rid of the "Russia thing." It would have been irresponsible not to investigate. Clinton was impeached for less.
And why all this talk of exoneration? Legally, exoneration refers to a state where a person who is convicted of a crime is later proven to be innocent. Since Trump was not on trial, and not convicted of anything, he cannot therefore be exonerated of anything.
@Susan So why was HE the one declaring exoneration?
Donald Trump is a liar, a con and a cheat.
He has stolen money from multiple families and ruined many lives.
If this is what leadership in this country looks like, then God help us all.
Louie
3
The first thing a modern autocrat does is capture society's umpires--the prosecutors, the judges, and the media. Trump apparently has a partisan AG willing to protect him from the obstruction charge, at the cost of the Justice Department's standing as an independent body. The next thing an autocrat does is go after his enemies--political opponents, voices in the media, etc. Trump appears poised to initiate this phase with the help of Barr.
Expect Trump in the coming weeks to launch all-out war against both Democrats (and any wayward Republicans) and the media. He's going to be emboldened since he finally has his Roy Cohn.
1
PUBLISH THE ENTIRE REPORT.
It is not up to AG Barr to determine for the entire country what the meaning of 22 months of examination means to 300 million plus Americans!
Nothing to hide? PUBLISH THE ENTIRE REPORT!
4
@B. Rothman "...It is not up to AG Barr to determine '
Actually, it might be.
My mules know enough not to keep pushing when it's pointless. How can Trump's critics not take pause here? Some actually wanted to impeach him for colluding with the Russians! It's not like we dodged a bullet there, but it would have been a historical miscarriage of justice.
2
@carl bumba, you're assuming that there was no evidence of collusion. That's not what the report says. It says the evidence didn't rise to the level of indictment.
Perhaps others have noted this, but you could have scripted Trump and Co's response, and his false claims of exoneration. What else would you expect from a human who averages 8-10 public lies a day during his time defiling the White House and our nation? The truth? Honor? Humility? Nope. Instead, we have a highly partisan AG, he of the famous 19-page memo essentially saying Trump could not obstruct justice short of obstructing an investigation into a murder he committed on 5th Avenue, concluding no obstruction. Ok, got it - message received. "Nothing to see here, folks, move on."
Cue Claude Rains to round up the usual suspects.
2
If only the guy would stop "declaring" and start Presidenting !
3
Trump can never let anything go. Examples Hillary and her emails and John McCain and his thumbs down healthcare vote.
He now has lots of new fodder with his “victory” from the Mueller investigation. He will continue to rant and rave at his enemies and we, the American public, will continue to see nothing accomplished in Congress.
The winners will be FOX, CNN & MSNBC who will continue to have lots of stuff for their 24/7 coverage,
3
Enough already Hillary lost. Some Democrats need to watch a few of those Letgo TV ads.
This is why Pete Buttgieg is moving up in the polls , he is the only sensible candidate saying Democrats need to move on to important issues that concern Americans. I intend to give him a closer look
1
@Hellen
Indeed. Bernie and Tulsi Gabbard are also not Trump-fixated.
1
@Hellen We have the man who, legally or otherwise, shoved her aside and took over a White House that used to be principled. That's not an important issue?
Have we learned nothing about Republicans from/since the Kavanaugh hearings? They lie about anything they cannot hide!
2
Comrade Trump declared war on the United States in 2016.
@Steven of the Rockies OK, Stevie. Very helpful.
Trump wants an investigation intro how the Mueller investigation was started. Democrats should give it to him. Let's find out exactly why Trump's appointee, Republican Rod Rosenstein, decided that we needed a special council to investigate a possible conspiracy between Trump and Russian intelligence.
Every time Republicans say that Democrats should end their investigation, Democrats should say, "you asked for this investigation. We are investigating why the Justice Department appointed a special counsel."
The Trump administration lies all the time. We have no reason to believe that what Barr says actually reflects the Mueller report.
On top of that, we have all seen Trump take the side of Russian intelligence over U.S. intelligence, in public, again and again, even on foreign soil. Trump keeps attacking our counter-intelligence agency, the FBI.
A general is not supposed to side with enemy troops, and the Commander in Chief is not supposed to side with a hostile intelligence agency. "Putin strongly denied it" is not an explanation.
If Trump is not engaged in a conspiracy with Russian intelligence, then we need to know why he keeps acting exactly as if he is.
I trust Mueller to do his job, but I do not trust his bosses. I keep seeing Trump commit treason in plain sight, and if Republicans were not traitors, they would have removed him from office long ago.
We need to know exactly what Mueller found not just believe the Trump administration as so many seen to be.
1
The Russians played our system like a fiddle. They walked right up to the line without stepping over it, and got what they wanted. We are losing faith in our institutions, and our friends are losing faith in us.
Now it will take us two years to get rid of Trump, and decades to get rid of his stench.
2
This is far from over. Mueller passed the buck to congress to investigate obstruction. What did he obstruct? Evidence of collusion.
2
Am I confused here? How is this a blight on Democrats when this investigation was started by a Republican assistant AG to look in to the firing of a Republican FBI chief and conducted by a Republican special council? We may have been thrilled at the prospect of proving what we know to be true, that this man and his cronies are Russian operatives. But Democrats had no power for the first 2 years of this investigation. As for blaming Obama for not doing more, he wanted bipartisan support to bring this information to the American people and ol' Mitch Kentucky McConnell wouldn't have it.
2
@MJ They have to blame Obama or else take a realistic look at their own folly. Why do you think they're looking back to the last century for another culprit?
Trump will go full speed ahead to remake our system of government. For him and his base, an autocracy ruled by oligarchs is now on the table.
1
As Trump continues to lower the bar on the Presidency, it’s hard to believe America will ever be the same.
@DSS America cannot be the same. The question is, Will we have learned anything from this at all? History, as was said long ago, has a way of repeating itself.
During the 2016 campaign Trump would not say if he would accept the results if Hillary won. It is Trump who is the usurper.
I never expected the Mueller report to conclude there was collusion. Collusion requires planning. If there is one thing the Trump administration has demonstrated over the last 2 years it is that it is incompetent. Actions are taken with absolutely no thought about potential consequences.
Trump does not deserve to be thrown out in 2020 merely because he may have committed crimes. He deserves to be thrown out for sheer incompetence.
1
@Cooofnj That may be. But, personally, I'm more afraid of the crimes.
Why wouldn't any one question Trump's motives and actions--he is a chronic liar.
2
Once again the predatory Trump is going after his own people which started the focus on him. He never learns.
2
I have been down for several days now, feeling as I did when Trump was elected in 2016. Yet it goes beyond Mueller's report. After all, it is now clearer than ever that Russia had a major hand in promoting Trump. And this man in the Oval Office was not exonerated from possible obstruction of justice. But you see, even if there were no Special Counsel, Trump remains Trump, an uncivil, indecent, and amoral liar. His MAGA supporters along with their leader will be metaphorically stomping on us "liberals" and "socialists" more than ever, appallingly holding up their Christian God as the final word re this farce of an administration. Where on earth do we turn now? Our Supreme Court? Our Senate? I hope that this encourages rather than discourages us to fight like the Dickens to rid this man of his universal taint in 2020 and send him packing to live his final days in one of his Towers of Gold.
8
Three things we knew going in: 1) the Trump would respond with some version of "no collusion, with hunt!" and 2) Barr would refuse to release the report itself, and 3) given that Trump and his associates have lied, repeatedly and demonstrably, about their contacts with Russian officials, their payoffs to porn stars, etc., we know they can't be trusted to give us an accurate version of Mueller's findings.
So it's really up to Congress. Democrats need to push for a full public release of the report as being a necessity in order for the public to have any confidence in the findings. And they need to call Mueller to testify in congressional hearings. Until then, it's pointless to speculate about what's been learned, or to react to Trump's predictable rantings.
6
Let me ask another perhaps more fundamental question:
If Russia's interests aren't aligned with ours, why would Russia/Putin want Trump as President? It would seem that they believe a Trump presidency would be better for Russia and logically, worse for the United States....
3
@AS But that doesn't mean their interests are aligned. It means only that they have faith in our inability under current leadership to make good on our own goals.
I hope Donald the Shameless enjoyed part of this weekend, because it doesn't change a thing about who he is.
When Congress invites Mueller over for their monthly book club, the American people will finally get some real answers.
And, if that doesn't happen, if we don't see an open interview of Mueller, then this country is really being run by a deep state.
5
I don't get it. Trump fires the head of the FBI, Comey, admits on TV that he did it because of the FBI was investigating Trump's connections with Russia, then tells Russians IN THE WHITE HOUSE that he fired Comey to stop their investigation of Russia and Mueller doesn't think this is obstruction. This is nuts. I'm rethinking my view of Mueller.
5
He reminds me of one of my cousins who, wherever she went, had a problem or a conflict, whether it was with her employer or a homeowner's association, or even family, if she felt the least bit slighted. She gave the silent treatment once (to her own sister) on the issue of serving hot or cold hor d'oeuvres at a bridal shower. They didn't speak for months and months. Oy.
2
@Anon Agreed. But I got the point the last couple of times you posted this.
Not even President Lincoln considered the rebellious Southerners as his enemies. That Trump declares all of us as his enemies because we oppose him tells you just how far down the rabbit hole we are under this man's lawless rule. Now that he will apparently suffer no consequences for what used to be seen as treason we can expect even worse in the days ahead.
5
For sure we are headed full speed toward dictatorship.
1
With each passing day, Donald Trump makes more enemies. This past Saturday, I attended my Congresswoman Lori Trahan's Town Hall meeting. Several comments revealed that the Trump tax cuts have actually caused people to owe more, not less. Each and every day, we hear more evidence of his lies. Liars do not make friends.
6
Our Shameless president opening war to his enemies , all are American.
Putin and Kim are his friends.
4
Mueller, like Trump, is a Republican. Why would Mueller want to tamper with a system that rewards white men regardless of their ability, morality, or competency?
2
Mueller's full report needs to be published. All we have now is Barr's spin.
5
Barr was picked to protect the President. Now that he has proven himself you can be sure Trump’s enemies will be investigated.
I'm not sure how Mr. Trump can place so much confidence in an exercise which has characterized as a witch hunt and a hoax. But I am fairly confident that he will read this as permission to keep doing whatever it is he wants to do, regardless of laws, traditions, norms and , especially, the needs and feelings of other people.
2
@Frank Actually, Frank, he won't read this. There's no praise in it for him.
The key to prosecution is discovery. Robert Mueller's investigation made a lot of discoveries that he could not act upon due to the limits put on his investigation. Many of those discoveries have resulted in spawned investigations. Until all the crimes have been investigated and adjudicated, Donald Trump is not out of the woods.
5
What was that saying, never wound a snake?
Strength doesn't win wars, strategy does, and the ability to be focused and ruthless. This is how business runs and not government, which is why Trump is ahead. Until and unless this changes, the plodding institutional process and associated safeguards run the risk of being neutered.
1
@Baddy Khan Strategy is vital. But the strategy in 1945 was to drop the two powerful bombs, and that strategy of strength brought the war to a close. Strategy means little if you don't have strength enough to back it up.
Whatever the outcome was going to be Trump bought this all upon himself. Pretty obvious Russia interfered in our election and then we had Trump publicly announcing he would be seeking Russian help to get dirt on his opponents. And the people he hired with questionable connections to the Russians so an investigation was warranted.
The tax payers paid for this report so Mr.Barr hand it over.
2
Like the rest of today's articles, this focuses on Barr; implying that his review of the investigation is suspect. Does anyone here believe that if it were false, Mueller wouldn't come out to set the record straight? And no mention that Rosenstein also reviewed the report. Do we not believe he too would cry foul if the conclusions were wrong or that Barr was misleading the country on the collusion findings?
I now believe that the Dems will not accept any outcome other than to see Trump ruined and impeached. Ever, no matter what. This will be the reason I will stop voting Dem. Until the party becomes one of honesty with adult behavior, they are lost.
The want 16 year olds to vote?! Want to stack the Supreme court with countless justices appointed by the current 'party' whatever that means. Even if one party has the presidency, what about the house and Senate? They want everyone to get a paycheck for being alive and a new 'green' deal that destroys the economy from within all while pushing for open borders, even though that means our culture and language go by the wayside and our population triples over the next 30 years? With not recognition that it's population growth that is destroying the planet; CO2 is but a symptom as a result of that root cause?
Never mind. The Dem party is proving itself the party of petty waste and nonsense; as well as a desire to not do the job they are actually getting paid for. We need a third party!
2
@Ma Since when does a party get paid...and by whom?
We, as Americans, require to understand, to acknowledge, that trump is a focus for our anger but, (but), we need to speak to the symptoms that brought this miscreant into our presidency.
Symptoms such as ignorance of the Constitution. Civics class, anyone. Symptoms such as racism disguised as not racism. Need I make a Power Point lecture. Fear of losing white power. What ever. Fear of losing one's entitlements as a male. Sigh. Fear of job loss with the larger problem of job adaption. (Coal miners becoming bee keepers. Good choice. Above ground, clean air, home for dinner, no black lung disease.)
A person, as president, can make changes, can upend the cart, can sweep clean. That person must be smart, understanding, a quick read, and a listener. And, the citizens must be informed, responsive to changes, not taken in by form but adhering to substance. trump appeals to his base by creating fear and making some group or idea the "other". You must have an other or there can be no fear. Education can dispel ignorance. Diversity can dispel fear. The human condition is a continuumm of variables. Money and celebrity does not make a person amazing.
1
Now is NOT the time for Dems to shrink and go on the defensive. Trump certainly won't, and never does anyway. Dems must continue to press, even more forcefully .. and raise all the questions that remain unanswered. And, there are many. If the full report isn't forthcoming, get up on the bully pulpit and challenge Trump to answer questions that remained unresolved. Get in his face with "America wants an answer Mr. President". Make Trump go on one labile twitter frenzy after another. He won't hold back, and neither should you.
4
I don't know how people are surprised by this. It's America. Everybody was always going to get away with everything.
The Mueller report specifically does not exonerate the President. His inability to read English is worrisome. He knows that his braggadocio will drown out the truth and his followers will only hear what they choose to hear. Mueller allegedly could not find enough evidence to indict a sitting President. That is only one bar that must be reached. President Trump is very lucky in that the Senate will rubber stamp any appointment he makes, so the AG will protect him. The only question that remains is whether the House of Representatives can perform the needed investigations without the Democrats shooting themselves in the foot. The other potential source of comfort is that the Southern District will continue their investigation and shed some light on the truth. One final thought. A verdict of not guilty, or not indicted, is not the same as innocent. It just means there was not sufficient evidence for conviction beyond a reasonable doubt. That might be a fair standard for a common criminal, but this President is anything but that.
1
He was explicitly NOT exonerated, and he declared war on his “enemies” long before this. He makes Nixon’s enemies list seem almost quaint.
2
Trump aside, the precedent being set here by Barr and, sadly, Mueller is staggering.
According to official DOJ policy, you can do anything you want if you are president, including firing the person investigating you and bragging about it on national TV.
The DOJ has given the green light to future presidents to behave in all manner of unethical ways. How can we ever criticize anyone in the future if we have officially sanctioned Trump's behavior?
So much for the so-called "rule of law".
4
So, guilty of all the deadly sins except, it appears, collusion.
1
My worry is now, what will keep the Russians from interfering in the next election? The Trump admin. is conflicted, and I have no confidence that they will try to protect us from further Russian shenanigans.
3
If he wants to go after who started the investagations he has to start with his own administration and other republicans. Democrats, even though they were hoping for something on Trump, did not start the investigation.
Time to Hit The Streets, Good People of OUR United States of America.
Do not let Barr pull a Cheney. Do not let the crooks continue to try to destroy OUR governments. Do not let them continue to abuse the power vested in them.
Not now. Not ever again.
4
Barr's letter of summary should not be the last word on the Mueller inquiry.
Unless the full report is released there will always be questions about how the evidence led to it's conclusion.
Did not rise to the level of obstruction of justice, or collusion leaves open many interpretations.
This was no witch hunt, it was a which hunt, there were so many trails to follow. Either Trump was just too incompetent to collude, or too smart. We need to see the full report.
1
I think the real message is being overlooked regarding the Special Prosecutors conclusions. The Russians interfered in our election!!! No argument by the President nor with Republicans, Democrats, or Independent politicians! Without the Russian propaganda campaign, Trump's razor thin margin of victories in WI, MI, and PA probably never would have happened without it (even with Hillary Clinton's mismanagement and Comey's interference). People it was called a Blue wall for a reason. The negativity and divisiveness clearly had an effect on voter turnout for the Dems in those States.
Trump had successfully turned this investigation from the Russians to his personal involvement in the election. The bait was too great for the media and Democrats to pass on. Our country now has no mandate supported by both Democrats and Republicans to protect our elections from outside influences. So China, North Korea, Israel, Russia, and anyone else, contributions are welcomed with open arms.
1
@Progers9
Yup, it’s a free for all.
An American vote is now worth a third of a vote, at best.
Maybe the Russians (pro Trump) and the Chinese (against Trump) will cancel out eachother.
The operative word in the overall picture is "criminal". Trump is named in current indictments (person # 1) and the people have, in fact gone to jail (or will be going) fro criminal activities. Russia DID interfere. Most, if not all,of Trump's statements were eventually proven false. The intelligence communities were proven correct.
What Americans can conclude is that we a President who lies, is involved in criminal activities, and will falsely disparage any person or agency to get what he wants. That is dangerous.
Trump will face criminal charges at some point. Mueller's report is only the end of one small chapter.
It's a sad day.
1
Trump will go full speed ahead to destroy our system of government. For him and his base, a dictatorship is now on the table.
2
I think Mr. Gidley speaks only for himself when he says he has no plans to ask for a special counsel to go after the Democrats.
The war against his enemies. Justice, Truth, The constitution and honest Americans.
1
Trump is going to use this in his campaigns to paint the image of the victim of the horrible liberal establishment. It will work, too. Republicans no longer consider the majority of the people who live in this country as real Americans who share anything with them. The democracy does not serve their interests and they have decided to opt for Trump as fearless leader who will restore their country as they imagine. It’s a shame to see a great nation brought low under a dishonest and rather ignorant man but to Republicans he’s the greatest leader, ever.
1
I thought it will be over. But Trump proving us it is just starting for more lies, threat and intimidation and extortion on Media and democrats. Too bad.
Mr. President, with your top campaign officials from 2016 either in jail or under indictment, who will you be tapping for the 2020 campaign? And, will you be asking Russia for additional help?
1
So Trump didn't collude. Then why did he act like he did? It speaks volumes that Trump is so thin skinned that he hated having his intentions and behavior questioned that he appeared to have no confidence in the truth. A normal person only tries to stop an investigation when they are guilty, not because they find it insulting.
He's also so arrogant that he expects people to believe whatever he says, even when it seems to point to the opposite. Why ask for leniancy for Flynn, fire Commey, cuddle up to Russia, lie about the Trump Tower meeting, dangle pardons and work so hard to discredit the only impartial report that could clear him. Even Trey Gowdy said "act like you're innocent".
We now know Trump is an even more horrible person and President than we thought before. He hasn't lifted a finger to reign in election interference. All the behavior attributed to changing the headlines was really just Trump being Trump.
The bottom line is Trump is a terrible President who beat a flawed and damaged opponent and can hide inside a robust economy he inherited and then juiced with a deficit exploding tax cut. It's far more important to remove him through the electoral process than to replace him with the even less qualified Mike Pense through a political process. It's unlikely the stars will once again align to repeat this national mistake and its time to move on.
The so-called 'progressives' or 'liberals' now can start peddling collusion between Mueller and Trump, given the Russia collusion failed to materialize.
Once they recover from the septic shock which this report is for them.
1
No matter what the findings, the LIAR in Chief would have claimed "no collusion", "witch hunt", bla bla bla. Tweet tweet. He has assumed his favored victim role and claimed "democrats are out to get me". Actually the vast MAJORITY of US want trump gone. The sooner the better for our democracy.
Here's hoping the democrats in Congress and the democrats running for president can move forward with cogent effective messaging rather than their typical 'circular firing squad' attacking one another. I don't see US benefiting from a second trump term ( unless it's a prison term for trump).
If he did nothing wrong, why was Frump so worried before the report came out and so relieved afterwards?
2
“[T]he president, who has long felt victimized by the Russia investigation and the shadow it has cast over his legitimacy, presented Mr. Barr’s statements as an unalloyed victory.”
Let’s return to reality. Donald Trump, from the time Robert Mueller began his investigation, PRETENDED to be the victim. Trump knows the many ways in which he put his own selfish interests ahead of our nation’s security. Trump knows the many lies he has told on a daily basis to hide his guilt.
Donald Trump, while only possessing the cleverness of a grifter, is not stupid. He never actually “felt victimized by the Russia investigation.”
Attorney William Barr, on the other hand, is an intelligent, albeit intellectually corrupt, man of wide government experience. Barr took the gift which Robert Mueller, out of Mueller's misplaced sense of duty to the rules of the Justice Department, handed Barr.
Barr has encouraged Trump to claim innocence and vindication. The Trump enemies’ list is being compiled, and our 250-year democratic tradition hangs by a thread.
All hail to the Imperial President, a concept to which William Barr has long devoted himself.
1
Trump will give his base an overload of red meat sending them into a frenzy of "lock her up" and attack the free press as enemies of the people . A demagogue who got his start in politics claiming Obama was born in Kenya will go on the attack while playing the ultimate victim. Putin ,Kim and MSB are thrilled their admirer Trump is now free to pursue becoming a dictator in their mold .
1
Trump still doesn’t accept that as the Nation’s chief law enforcement officer he has a constitutional duty to support, not denigrate, the investigation into election interference by Russians and possible assistance by Americans. His selfish disregard of that duty demonstrates once again his unfitness for the office.
If you don't like the guy, defeat him at the polls. In the meantime how about we put the dog and pony show on hold and get down to business?
1
@btb I thought his "war" WAS business. If we don't do something to rein in these impulses now, we may be "out of business."
1
Nothing short of discouraging and ridiculous to see the continued, relentless aggression on the part of these same Trump enemies, critics, trolls this morning.
Its as if Mueller's investigation means nothing, the revelation that we've been seeing 2 1/2 years of deceit, misleading intelligence and reporting covering a *flat-out scam* on the part of a few journalists, politicians, and bureaucrats has fallen flat among the anti-Trump crowd - just plow ahead with every insult, disparaging comment, assumption of guilt....anything. Don't even slow down.
2
A friendly tip for the President:
If you don't want the public to think you are doing something treasonous:
--don't have secret meetings with our longtime adversaries
--don't lie about said meetings when they are found out
--don't keep all your finances so secret
--don't have your son-in-law attempt a secret back channel to Russia
--don't make third-world dictator comments about punishing the media and all your enemies
It would be extremely negligent if our National Security did not investigate when this behavior is so obvious.
Mr. Trump, you are bringing all this on yourself.
1
Oh sure: the snake in a suit is exonerated. And now the pit viper is ready to attack.
A war on his enemies? Like Stalin? He learned much from the Russians.
1
No collusion? Ok, fine. There must be another reason why Trump is so obsequious to Putin. What is it? Mr. Trump, if you're not Putin's stooge, stop acting like it.
Trump even lies about Barr’s letter! How does “does not exonerate” become “totally exonerated?” Pathetic.
2
Time to change the subject!
1
The fact that a person in Trump's position has consistently incited violence and "declares war on his enemies" is sick and further destroys the integrity of the highest publicly held position in our nation. He is a mentally and emotionally sick person.
1
Trump is a sore winner. Always a victim. Never a victor. Lies about bigger, better also lies about worse, dishonest, unfair. He tries to occupy diametrically opposing views. All is about Trump.
2
Not a peep from James Comey, what does he think?
@Jacquie
He tweeted a picture of trees in a forest. So he is saying Mueller cannot see the forest for the trees. And Lindsay Graham is saying he agrees, and he will see Comey soon. Now you are all caught up.
We are living in a Twilight Zone when the best that Republicans can claim about their president is that he has not committed treason. Break out the champagne!
1
Multiple people around Trump are serving, or will serve time. That is a real thing that outlets like Fox News seem to forget. This is no victory - it is an embarrassment that someone like him is serving as President. Totally sick.
2
Trump lies when he claims he was exonerated.
Read for facts, don't listen to blowhards, am radio hate mongers, or the epicenter of fake news, faux.
1
"Trump Declares Exoneration, and a War on His Enemies"
That will work well with his War on Friends. The people who voted him into office may eventually notice they made a mistake, since coal and manufacturing jobs are still going away.
2
The media must be very careful to avoid sensationalizing this important story. Listeners tend to hear one or two words, and not the important nuance contained within a news story. The public may hear "not exonerated" but fail to understand that a crime may or may not have been committed. Certain words will be repeated over and over again by clueless media: illegal, exonerate, vindication, and yes "lock her up". Media continues to be an arm of the Trump Administration. Democrats who had hoped that Trump would indict his own administration are not worthy of being elected. They must work for the next general election with ideas and energy. When Trump supporters repeat the party line of liking what "Trump has done" they should be asked how his policies have specifically impacted their daily lives.
1
The problem we face on what to do next depends on the definition of collusion and how it applies to a President. Firing people he appointed, talking to leaders of autocratic countries about politics, and making intimidating statements at political rallies are probably okay for a President, but not anyone else. The only option left is to beat him at the ballot box, assuming there is an election.
1
Barr's decision is the least of our problems. Those of us who are sickened by Trump will be looking back at this time when all we wanted was the release of the Mueller report and wonder how incredibly naive we were.
It is time to partition the nation. It will not be easy and it will not be painless. But there is no alternative, at least for the sixty percent of us who do not want to live in a dictatorship. Living under a totalitarian, lawless regime that prides itself on its bigotry isn't the America I grew up in - and I am in my 60's.
The fact is that forty percent of our people believe Trump is wonderful. And they will never change. Another fact? Trump may well face state criminal charges once he leaves office. Taking these facts together with Trump's pronouncement this morning that he is going to punish his "enemies" means only one thing: He will not leave office voluntarily, even if he loses an election.
Even worse, he'll simply declare another "emergency" that exists only in his mind, and cancel the November 2020 election. And forty percent of our citizens will cheer him on as he does this. He knows that he now has five Supreme Court votes letting him do whatever he wants.
Trump has consolidated absolute power. And he will never leave the White House. This situation will not "improve" with time. This means just one thing: the sixty per cent of us who are sickened by his regime have some very difficult decisions to make. And we'd better start making them now.
3
Special Counsel Muller exonerated Trump and his associates of collusion, but he did not exonerate or condemn Trump of obstruction of justice. However, Attorney General Barr and Deputy General Rosenstein exonerated Trump of obstruction of justice.
After the conclusion of more than two years of intensive investigation, no one has been charged with collusion or obstruction of justice. That's exoneration.
I want the FULL report and Congress and the SDNY to continue with their investigations before we say Trump is exonerated. If I see real explanations for all that went on and how so many around him have been prosecuted, but he is innocent, then okay, but until then, I cannot believe this con man is innocent.
Those responsible for it should face scrutiny? Just to review: A Republican President chose a Republican Attorney General. That Attorney General was approved by a Republican-controlled Senate. The Republican President also chose a Republican Deputy Attorney General, who was also approved by a Republican-controlled Senate. Because the Republican Attorney General was involved in the presidential campaign, he recused himself from investigations surrounding the campaign. Thus the Republican Deputy Attorney General headed the investigation. The Republican Deputy Attorney General chose a Republican former FBI Director to conduct the investigation.
So who exactly is going to be facing scrutiny here? The President? The Senate? The AG and DAG the President hand-picked? The fact that Trump has fairly effectively managed to spin this investigation as a Democratic witch hunt (I'd be willing to bet heavily that a majority of registered Republicans think the Democrats were behind it) is yet one more example that facts mean absolutely nothing.
3
I believe that Mueller was concerned about involving the judicial branch in the "takedown" of a President and thus gave Trump every opportunity of doubt, perhaps beyond a reasonable doubt. Instead of dealing with Trump as a "lawbreaker" and creating an indictment, which is what most prosecutors would do and which Mueller did to all of the non-Presidential lawbreakers, he seems to have weighed both sides the way a jury would be expected to do and ultimately equivocated with the obstruction of justice charge. We don't know at this time how close an indictment on the collusion with Russia came and how much he gave Trump a reasonable doubt in this issue. If Mueller had created indictments of Trump, even if they could not be served until he left office, he would have handed Congress the ammunition to remove Trump through impeachment. Ultimately he is saying that removal of a President is the job of Congress not the Judicial branch.
We need the whole report, they can black out the secret info, I do not trust Mr. Barr. I do trust Mr. Mueller, who, according to Barr, said that he didn't FIND ANY EVIDENCE for collusion. If we lived in a country that Trump seems to admire so much, like Russia or North Korea, where everything and everybody is under surveillance, maybe then Mueller would have found the evidence..
I simply do not understand the conclusion that there was no collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russians. How does one explain away Papadopolous, Page, Flynn, the Trump Tower meeting with Russian agents, and Manafort's success in rewriting the Republican platform? How does one ignore the "Russia, if you're listening" speech? Are we to believe that this is all coincidental? And Trump was never interviewed because his lawyers knew he would lie.
Perhaps Mueller didn't really try because of the Justice Department's rule against indicting a sitting president, or perhaps the collusion didn't rise to the level of a conspiracy?
I can only hope that sufficient leads were passed on to SDNY and other offices to continue a vigorous investigation.
3
I always suspected that this president is perfectly capable to obstruct justice without an underlying crime: vanity. A leader of the free world subject to Congressional or judicial oversight? Presidential harassment! Even what many suspected to be proof of shenanigans, the lies about Russian contacts seem to be more out of fear of looking bad and delegitimized. On first sight it's curious how few people opposite seem to be relieved by the fact that there was no collusion. But them there is so much else ...
OK fellow Dems, Mueller clearly has left coal in our stockings. There will be no impeachment; there will be no prosecution. Deal with it. Now we have to focus on 2020 lest Trump be given four more years to destroy the republic. The party MUST tap into an economic message that connects with people. WHY has there been no movement on infrastructure? Smart electrical grids? Renewable energy? High-speed rail? I believe Medicare for All can be sold to the country, or at very least expanded Obamacare. At every turn show how the Republicans are all about advocating for big money. It's not a hard case to make!
2
@BassGuyGG
Yeah, make sure you remind them about the part where the don't get to keep their private insurance, that should get a lot of people out to vote. Also, just ignore the fact that the largest Union in the Country is against your signature platform proposal, the GND, and keep insisting on it. That too will turn out lots of voters. They will all be voting for Trump but please do those things I implore you.
A question I cannot get out of my mind is did the Mueller report use the non-legal term "collusion" in any substantive way. If he did then Mr. Mueller has let us down.
But if not, then it's clear that Barr's cover letter is a cover-up letter, because Barr does use that term.
1
Crimes discovered during the Mueller investigation, not directly related to Russian interference in the 2016 election, were referred to other investigate agencies. Only the reading the full report will shed light on the extent of these crimes. Calling the narrowness of the Barr summary , "exoneration" , is like calling a cow with a sesame bun on its back and belly a "nothing burger".
We have yet to see the fruition of Robert Muellers' exploration into the dark caves of Trumpworld. Stay tuned.
1
"Trump Declares Exoneration, and a War on His Enemies"
Pretty sure that headline could have been used everyday, concerning every issue of his presidency so far.
So thanks for playing the hits!
1
Since Trump World and Fox News love conspiracies so much, it's time to turn the tables on both of them. From where I stand, Trump agreed not to fire Mueller and Rosenstein in exchange for an inconclusive obstruction and collusion investigation. Barr was there merely to facilitate in the end.
2
Nixon was reelected before he went down. I would prefer that we not go through that to get there.
Impeach Trump Now.
1
While I am not at all happy with the outcome, I accept it. But Mueller's report needs to be released in full (except of course the grand jury details which understandably cannot be made public.) Why can't Trump supporters also accept it and move on? Investigate the investigators? Are you kidding me? Making America great does not mean going after your political enemies. The hatred and vitriol, and now the smugness from the right is intolerable.
Democrats need to move full speed ahead to defeat Trump in 2020 and put this sad excuse for a man behind us.
2
In evaluating any individual, one would always look at the people who surround him. It' sort of hard to believe that the Strumf's campaign director, his long time attorney, and others in the swamp, are all going to jail, but their leader knew nothing of their activities. My only hope is to remember that Al Capone, for all his corruption and murders, went to jail for tax evasion.
2
Establishment Democrats, Hillary Clinton and their leadership. The gift to Trump that keeps on giving. What a disaster they’ve been to those that have tried to resist Trump based on policy.
2
@FXQ
They are all having the time of their life though. Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer are always beaming when I see them on television, obviously having a grand time. Same look Hillary had when she saw the Balloons at her Nomination. Never have seen a fully grown person take such delight at balloons but that is how much fun they are all having. Every single one of them is having the time of their life.
None of this explains all of trump's bizarre behavior regarding the Russians, the FBI firings or what was behind all the Russian contacts leading up the the election. Did trump know anything about the DNC hacks before the Wikileaks dump? And six of trump's associates have already been convicted of lying to Congress and other crimes. What's up with that? There's more here than meets the eye. This isn't over.
4
There is an illegal takedown attempt in progress. Trump is trying to take down the US Constitution and American democracy.
3
A war on his enemies?
Well Don, welcome to America and the right of citizens to oppose you, and have every right and had just cause to assume you were up to shenanigans. And you probably were, but cleverly hid (as Comey pointed out) you hinted at but never said, and depend upon others to do your dirty work.
In my rather large company who is my employer, there is specific policy against any retribution. Too bad the President cannot see the value in mutual respect and for the good of all.
Your current office is not a playground nor revenge opportunity.
Get over it and do the work you're paid to do, and we are spending a lot of money for you to do.
Our current President has reduced critical thinking to the relic of a past age. For starters, the Mueller Report's inability to conclude that Trump obstructed justice is not the equivalent of a finding that Trump did not obstruct justice. In past times, the Report's findings would have been devastating to any President because it does NOT conclude that the allegations are groundless.
But our current President refused to be interviewed by the Special Counsel during an investigation of the Russian interference in our Presidential Elections. Would an innocent man have refused? Think about that for a moment.
For Trump and some of his less thoughtful followers to now crow that the Mueller Report clears his name is not a surprise, but it is nevertheless incorrect.
When your surgeon tells you that she hasn't found any proof of cancer that is not the same thing as her telling you that you do not have cancer. This is especially so if you have all the other symptoms of cancer: passing blood in your urine, fatigue, sores that won't heal, etc.
Our President has, metaphorically, been passing blood and showing other signs of cancer for the past 2 years. He is plainly sick. The fact that the cancer did not show on this particular biopsy is not determinative. And it would be foolish to believe or proclaim otherwise.
4
The investigation and subsequent hasty opaque pronouncements are a cover up. Anyone with an IQ above 90 csn see this. I think Trump is so deeply and grossly compromised that officials don't want sunlight on it. This is misguided. Sunlight and transparency is the ONLY way to eject the corruption from our government and restore our reputation among the world's democracies, our allies. As long as corrupt billionaire men run our government, our elections, our courts, banks, and corporations, we are doomed.
1
I’m just a law-abiding citizen, so what do I know? I’m shocked at what I see as consequence-free corruption at the highest level of government.
President Trump openly, actively encouraged and welcomed foreign government support for his 2016 political campaign. Now I assume he will continue to do so in his current campaign for re-election because he has experienced no consequences.
Neither Trump nor his campaign reported multiple offers of help from Russia to counterintelligence or law enforcement authorities, and they lied shamelessly about contacts with Russians. Yet federal campaign finance laws prohibit soliciting and receiving support from foreign nationals or “substantially assisting” them in their efforts to influence an American election.
We know Trump is shameless. How we prevent our President and other candidates for office from corrupt campaigning in 2020 now that they have a green light?
63
@jscherpz
They have a green light now? Not before when the Clinton Foundation was collecting hundreds of millions in 'donations'? Here is a place to start. Arrest and put on trial Tony Podesta and all the other people who did exactly what Manafort went to prison for. All of them. Even the ones you like. Not willing to do that, post on the nytimes comment board and see if it changes anything maybe? Out of suggestions maybe others can add to my list.
1
@jscherpz
You have hit the nail on the head. By the standards of Attorney General Bass, any president – because he or she is above the law – has been given the right by Donald Trump’s exoneration to sell influence to the highest bidder, even if that bidder is a hostile foreign country seeking to destroy our nation.
3
@GregP, I have no problem with Tony Podesta facing prosecution for failing to disclose his work for Paul Manafort's lobbying group. The FBI has already done a thorough investigation of the Clinton Foundation, and found there was no evidence of corruption. You want to renew that investigation?
The Clinton Cash book published by Steve Bannon and funded by Robert Mercer was always an attempt to smear Clinton before the election. The right doesn't care about principles like avoiding pay-for-play--look at how Donald Trump conducts foreign policy. It's chilling that you would now support Trump locking up his "enemies."
7
I think Matthew Whittaker told us what his was hired for. Bill Barr wrote a highly questionable document in the summer which in retrospect should have disqualified him. I think Barr jumped on the grenade for Trump and apparently he knows how to work the system to stuff the report.
If Barr went to the bathroom, watched a basketball game or two over the weekend he would have cut into his time to read the report. He had 38 hours to read the most important in our countries history and Barr unilaterally summarized the report.
While I have all the respect for Robert Mueller I think he needs to be questioned under oath. We need to find out why the very careful Robert Mueller all of a sudden finished his report. Mueller is famously tight lipped and he probably will not make any statements on his own. It's like we're watching a football game where the referee declares a winner at the end of the third quarter.
18
Barr was made AG on his qualifications, pardoning those involved in Iran-Contra. There is plenty to unpack here without collusion. This includes violations in campaign finance and multiple lies by this administrations appointees to justice authorities.
6
I think the Justice department should investigate the investigators. These fine and noble people such as Nadler, Schumer, Schiff, et al should have all of their affairs examined, just as they want President Trump's every single thing he did in his life examined.
I am sure these people would welcome the opportunity to demonstrate their honesty and integrity to the American public.
By the way, what happened to evidence that Schiff says he saw with his own eyes linking the President to the Russian collusion ?
7
@Ron: There is no credible suspicion that Nadler, Schumer and Schiff did anything illegal that would warrant an investigation. Also remember that Comey, Mueller, Sessions, Rosenstein and Barr are all Republicans although Comey is now an independent. Mueller was appointed after Trump fired Comey because of the "Russia thing" as he himself called it. After Trump became the Republican nominee, the Russian sanctions disappeared from the Republican platform, he met one-on-one with Putin and confiscated the notes of the translator, he appeared with Putin last summer where he proceeded to throw America, its law enforcement institutions and American allies under the bus while kissing up to Putin and he does Putin's bidding. Collusion? Maybe, maybe not, but it's clear Putin has something over Trump. Follow the money (and the tax returns)! And let's not even start about the fraudulent Trump University scam, his use of his foundation as a piggy bank, violations of the emoluments clause, stiffing of contractors, and money laundering though real estate deals.
3
And just how would that help the country heal, Ron? Tell me.
Trump said on day one in his inauguration that the country would heal. He has done nothing to help make that happen. On the contrary, his daily words and deeds have made things worse. And his supporters want an endless cycle of investigations. Why are Trump supporters so afraid of the truth? Release the Mueller report in full!
3
Where were your concerns during the endless investigations into Hillary. Hypocrisy reigns in the republican and trump party.
3
Didn't Trump ask for Russia's help on live TV and then Russia obliged by leaking the email they hacked from the DNC? In return Russia of course gets their man Assad our of trouble, get to focus on their expansion of old lost states and tearing up nuclear warhead deals. In return, Trump gets election support, loans from oligarchs and a Trump tower in Russia. I wonder what Mueller got?
5
Over 100 contacts with Russia and Russian agents and this is what we get? Trying to set up back channels to the Kremlin and nothing to see here? His closest advisors talking to Wiki Leaks and handing over polling numbers and no "coordination"? No worries, we will move on and let the blue wave take him out in 2020.
17
Adam Schiff needs to go under oath and explain why he continually said he had conclusive evidence that Trump colluded with the Russians. Did he give that evidence to Mueller and if not, why not. Whatever we think of Trump. He was not guilty.
7
@Julia Sorry, but multiple people around Trump are serving time, or soon will be. That is the part of the story you seem to be missing.
2
"Barr has said he believes Justice Department regulations prevent him from releasing derogatory information about individuals his office has not criminally charged."
I wonder why James Comey rushed out right before the 2016 election to say that Hillary would not be charged? That was plenty derogatory. Our Justice Department is a joke!
8
@Jacquie
Like the softballs. Why did Comey do something Barr declined to do? Easy peasy. Because Comey is a Hot Shot, and Barr is a Professional. Clear as day.
Celebrating? Remember that the reason this investigation was started by the Justice Department was irrefutable proof by our intelligence services that Putin and his Russian disinformation army gave Trump the push he needed at the right time to barely make it over finish line. There is no reason to celebrate Sir...
4
Are you going to scrutinize all Americans who wanted to know the true depth of the Russian interference, Mr. President?
Mr. Trump had the perfect moment to close the divide in our nation, accept that investigations are important in a democracy - more important than the outcomes, perhaps - and move on to his next agenda item.
Well, actually, he's had that opportunity for 2 years. This rhetoric is nothing new.
THAT should be what everyone is looking at. Not that he is exonerated or not or whatever you think this report shows. Time after time after time, Mr. Trump shows himself not to be a leader of a diverse nation, but a man who cares only the victory for himself and those who support him.
The President is exonerated, in my mind. And regardless of that, I and everyone else with an ounce of interest in our nation as whole should agree that he needs to be out of the White House. He is not fit to be the leader of the greatest democracy on Earth.
4
The fact that Mr. Trump declares exoneration and is now looking for retribution toward Democrats and those calling for the investigation shows he is a petty vindictive leader who has no interest in unifying or healing this country. He may have been "exonerated" but he has done nothing that makes me trust him any more than I did before I read the AG report.
9
Now we move onto the next phase of the American transition into Oligarchy. Trump will use his vindication as license to shut down free speech and increase his personal deal making with corporations and foreign governments.
All boundaries and limits are off now, thanks to Mueller's failure to find adequate evidence of election impropriety. Whereas Trump once opined that he could commit a crime in Times Square without retribution, this decision will only embolden his preconceived notion of omnipotence.
His lackeys in congress will fall in line given his successful rejection of the rule of law.
His followers will swell in numbers because of the "spin" Trump will attach. They were easy marks before, but this exoneration will convince them that their mistaken conclusions were correct.
China's inexorable rise gained speed due to this terrible decision. China's focus on gathering allies is directly served by Trump's idiotic abandonment of these same countries.
In two short years, one misfit has upended the world order but his most serious crime will be Climate Change. Trump is deliberately exacerbating the very problem we should be solving. Students of statistics will understand that the Polar Vortex exceeded a two standard deviation variance. In short order the climatic changes will become irreversible.
All this while we wait for an election Trump is likely to void.
4
Just imagine:
Some crime committed. The investigator has found the evidence against the feet: brought the suspect to the scene of crime (footprints). Some evidence against the hands: they actually committed crime (fingerprints). But no indictment against the head: no evidence it managed the crime.
If major personalities close to Trump who acted in his interests, committed crimes, Mr. Trump is to bear full responsibility for their actions - especially so if he's a president.
2
@nooracle It was President Harry Truman who said about the responsibilities of the President: "Th buck stops here." Meaning that the President is ultimately responsible for everything that happens while someone is President. OTOH, Trump's mottos seems to be "Show me the money" and "It ain't my responsibility."
What happens after the bully wins? Democrats have to stick together for the next fight...eighteen months.
2
Now back to the business at hand- Robbing the national piggy bank, giving gifts to friends and family, and attacking all opposition.
8
There is simply no justice for the one per cent. After Manafort’s slap on the wrist, for treason what did you think would be Trump’s reckoning? I suggest that the American people stop paying their taxes and avoid enlisting in the military, like the wealthy. There are not enough jails to throw millions of people into. Just maybe the people will have a voice.
2
I do not believe that this changes anything for either tRump's supporters or detractors. He is unfit for office, plain and simple, and nothing will convince me otherwise.
11
From Trump's POV and regardless of the outcome it is Victory confirming his witch hunt.
As for obstruction of justice that is a different story. So American's will have to wait, but again Trump will claim victory even if he's guilty as sin because Trump truly believes he's above the law.
Hmm....what's he going to unleash on his "enemies?" Could be ugly. Very.
The Dems have to be smart about this. The Question is: can they be, or will they be swamped with emotion?
2
A counter-attack often follows an unsuccessful attack. Wish Trump lots of luck.
1
There has always only been one way to get rid of Trump and his crew of horrendous traitor-minions: VOTE THEM OUT!
In my opinion, the most pressing concern for humanity and the planet is obviously climate change. But America is frankly too selfish and ignorant to truly acknowledge this and/or see it as an opportunity to transform our economy while MAYBE saving ourselves.
So instead, the Democratic party should focus on ONE thing for 2020: Healthcare, healthcare, healthcare, healthcare. You don't even need to mention the GOP's glaring failure on this issue. People already know. So come up with real solutions that resonate with people and hammer it 24/7 until election day.
Defeating Trump on a real issue might not only get rid of him, but it will be as big a blow to him, his ego and his deluded gang of enablers as being indicted.
2
Dear Mr. President,
No Special Counsel Report, nor your hand-picked Attorney General's summary, can turn you into a good, moral, ethical and decent human being. You are what your are.
5
Trump’s enemies are the truth and the American people’s liberal democracy. Trump is and always has been a dishonest person. He thinks that by telling lies he can avoid the consequences of his acts. He’s not intelligent.
2
I would like congress to get to their real task, addressing our many issues that need new laws. That said several who encouraged this investigation need to be taken to a grand jury to decide if inditing them is appropriate. I would include say Hillary in addition.
1
I just don’t understand and never will how AG Barr cherry picked Mueller’s report 2 years in the making in 2 days. Trump and the White House claim vindication but vindication over what? Trump has been denouncing the Mueller investigation since day 1 and has planted his ‘witch hunt’ rhetoric every opportunity he got undermining the investigation.
These are very, very sad times in this country where on the surface it seems that a culture of corruption and abuse of power goes beyond the rule of law and not just in government. It was happening prior to Trump taking office but Trump has taken this corruption and abuse of power to new levels with impunity and a complicit GOP.
I am truly afraid that America will never recover from the Trump election, the country is terribly divided, the moral compass and civility of our Nation has gone by the wayside. Red flags are everywhere; we have a congress supporting a pathological liar. The worst is when you have his supporters defending him while he eats away at the very core of our democracy and what this once great country used to be. Even if the Democrats win the 2020 presidency, the stigma of a tainted and corrupt government and division of our people will always be there; the country may never heal from this debacle.
Everyone worries about Russia, China, North Korea, etc. but the real worry should be focused on the White House and this President. Twenty two months can be a very long time; a Trump re-election will be devastating.
183
@A.A.F. I totally agree. Guess we're supposed to not believe what we have seen and heard POTUS do with regard to Helsinki, Russians WH visit the day (or day after) Comey was fired, etc. The House must find the truth; we must vote against him and for our democracy in 2020!
6
@A.A.F. I think a Trump re-election will be worse then devastating. I already know young adults planning to depart if that happens.
1
@A.A.F.
" . . . a Trump re-election will be devastating."
Get ready for it. The Mueller report's pass on a Russia nexus = no Russia collusion interpretation = no reason to be concerned about Russian election meddling in the past, present, or future.
As a nation, we are toast if it turns out as described above.
4
The Special Counsel delivered 22 indictments and put several people in jail. Others are still being investigated or waiting sentencing. This should be the result that is being broadcast.
This is not a victory. It is an ocean of criminality surrounding a president. Criminality and contact with Russia were proven and admitted. That the president considers this a triumph tells all.
186
@Jeffrey
Nobody’s buying that, okay.
The indictments made were all for minor charges collateral to the focus of the investigation, or against Russian actors who will never come under U.S. jurisdiction. Not one charge of treason or conspiracy was made against any U.S. citizen.
The whole thing was a total waste.
6
@Jeffrey
Yes. And for a bit of detail:
Special counsel Robert Mueller’s team indicted or got guilty pleas from 34 people and three companies during their lengthy investigation, which is now complete.
That group is composed of six former Trump advisers, 26 Russian nationals, three Russian companies, one California man, and one London-based lawyer. Seven of these people (including five of the six former Trump advisers) have pleaded guilty.
27
@Greg
The Republicans initiated this investigation, not the Democrats. So are you saying that the Republicans owe the American people an apology for this?
11
The fact that our president has made this about him, and not our country, when Russian interference was proved during our last presidential election, shows everything you need to know about what motivates Trump as president.
It's him, him, him, not us.
142
@galtsgultch, since Trump now seems enamored of the Mueller Report (or at least William Barr's synopsis of it), I wonder whether he'll finally condemn Russia for attacking our election. I'm waiting.
2
The report neither exonerates nor condemns Trump, no surprise. While proof of a crime in this instance was not found, Trump’s slime factor, and more so of his team whether related to him or not, was made clear, not that such an exhaustive investigation was necessary for that. Trump is a liar, a cheat and a thief, all in one exceptionally unfit for the office package. That the former Republican Party has so caved Trump’s demands indicates their level of sleaze has reached new lows. Again, no such exhaustive level of investigation is necessary to see that either. Maybe an truth, honor and love of country will be restored as their driving forces but no evidence of that can be seen at the moment.
Maybe the United States of America will survive, jury’s still out. We are not who we were nor, more importantly, who we say we are. The world sees that, even the majority of Americans do. Yet still we continue on our self-destructive path. The premise underpinning the American experiment is dissolving in front of our very eyes.
88
@Medium Rare Sushi
I wonder how Mr Trump will react when he realizes that all of the many investigations into his life of crime will continue unabated, especially after his 'total exoneration'? Perhaps we'll see his true character emerge.
23
@Medium Rare Sushi “Maybe the United States of America will survive, jury’s still out.”
The US will survive, after all we survived the Civil War. We may not recognize the iteration but we’ll survive.
1
@markymark
We've already seen his " true character emerge" and it's not a pretty sight.
5
To be honest, I sensed where all of this was going from the very beginning. The question that I always kept at the back of the mind was this - what if Mueller does not find any clear evidence of obstruction or collusion?
At this point, I think one’s reaction to the Mueller Report depends on your own views of the President and of the Nation.
But there is one thing that has been made very clear, over the past two years:
America is a very divided Nation.
I look forward to seeing where President Trump decides to go after all do this, now that he believes that he has been exonerated - regardless of whether or not he actually is.
There are a lot of pressing issues that need attention in our country, and in the world.
Aloha 🤙🏼
5
Barr’s letter doesn’t clear Trump. It defines crimes to exclude what Trump did. We’re all being manipulated by a narcissistic psychopath, and the media and pundits are doing the manipulative psychopath’s work for him just as he was elected with. This is their subversive power. We’re all getting played like a violin.
The best you can say about Trump is that he possesses a low, animal cunning that has allowed him to skate on the precipice of out-and-out law-breaking without falling into the breach. It must be a rat's instinct for self-preservation, or something similar. For anyone who cares about democracy, look now how he wants to go after his political enemies full bore. What kind of people would approve of such a thing? The Mueller investigation was just that: an investigation. And now you have the result. So now will it be Trump dispatching his political enemies one by one, Corleone style, while music plays and he's on the golf course celebrating with his flunkies?
29
@Lldemats
Given what they have dragged the nation through--"look now how he wants to go after his political enemies full bore"--hope he nails every one of them.
The "rat" metaphor--like Comey "the snake"?
1
This wasn’t about Trump he just made it about him. This was about our vital elections being manipulated. I am more concerned about the electoral college influencing the vote... the GOP has been setting this up for thirty years... slow and steady. The Russian thing is just luck , a distraction. Disband the electoral college, one citizen one vote. Hopefully we can still vote our way out of this mess!🇺🇸
1
Really? I was happy just to let the investigation follow its course but President Trump whined several times every day. He couldn’t testify in his own behalf because he is a compulsive liar. He’s very tricky in the Nixon sense. This wasn’t about him, it was about the security of our elections. But he made it about him in true narcissistic fashion. I think he just wants to build that tower and I’m sure he will, no doubt bragging about how he fooled us! I saw Steve Brannon applauding a woman who hoped Trump would become our dictator... she may get her wish. He’s a pretty slippery fish... some people loved Mussolini. Perhaps we should pucker up.
The champagne corks are popping at the White House and the Kremlin.
17
@John M
Don't forget China--they dodged a bullet. They're as guilty as the Russians when it comes to cyber-crime--just not as much fun for our hate-Trump Sovietized mass-media.
Good news! We thought Trump was a corrupt, incompetent traitor unfit for the Presidency. But he's on corrupt, incompetent, and unfit for the Presidency!
I feel so much better?
9
The Bully pulpit in this president’s hyperbolic misuse. Republicans? You are complicit.
13
@Neil
And by "complicit" you mean putting him in the White House? Wrong. RNC Politburo hates him as much as the DNC Politburo, but, it seems, the polis likes him, to the chagrin of all.
1
“Remarkable in the seismic upheavals of 1933-4 was not how much, but how little, the new Chancellor needed to do to bring about the extension and consolidation of his power. Hitler’s dictatorship was made as much by others as by himself. As the “representative figure” of the “national renewal” Hitler could for the most part function as activator and enabler of the forces he had unleashed, authorizing and legitimating actions taken by others now rushing to implement what they took to be his wishes. Scarcely any of the transformations of Germany during the spring and summer of 1933 had followed direct orders from the Reich Chancellery. Hitler had rarely been personally involved. But he was the main beneficiary.”
--- Ian Kershaw, the noted biographer of Adolf Hitler who was instrumental in introducing the concept of “Working Toward the Fuhrer.”
Trump’s genius, like Hitler’s, lies in always avoiding direct involvement in his dirty work and always recruiting others to perform it.
This is what ended up preventing Mueller from even securing enough evidence to convict him of jaywalking.
22
@A. Stanton
I am now relying on SDNY investigations to get the sleaze ball and his criminal children into prison. The emoluments clause itself should be enough.
1
I'd like to see Adam Schiff out of office and go back to practicing law in Burbank. What a clown.
5
@Louis Anthes
I'd like to see the full Mueller report, and look forward to Wednesday, January 21st, 2020, when Individual 1 is indicted for campaign fraud and .. stay tuned to SDNY.
Sessions, Whitaker, Barr.
The Three Stooges.
7
Bill Clinton was nearly impeached for lying about cheating on his wife. Trump is just another snake in the swamp.
9
@Lillijag
Perjury is a real crime.
1
@Lillijag He was impeached, just not convicted by the Senate.
1
It's dismal to think about.Our Trump-centic world And now, as if we haven't seen/heard enough, we'll have an emboldened Trump ratcheting up his incessant barkings. And the media covering them(does "Trump coverage" translate into ratings/money?) A fair number of people I run into say they're basically fed up hearing about politics. And about 20 months before the actual election, the 2020 campaign has stated. We have the longest campaigns in the world x 10.Many of the developed countries have short campaign, some funded (idealistically?) by the government. Do the masses, whom the system is supposed to serve, want these lengthy affairs? I would say no. They're supposed to serve the people, but are they consulted at all? Of course the many parties in political culture feast($$$) on all this. Dismal? Yes, you can say that in spades.
3
Why's Comey silent? Shouldn't the man be outraged--he set the whole thing in motion along with McCain?
Perhaps he, Rice, Lynch, Page, and Strzok are the targets of a DoJ Obama-Hillary collusion investigation?
7
Donald Trump claimed he would “drain the swamp”. He filled it with slime.
7
Donald Trump is a petty, small, ignorant and greedy little man. Even his criminality is small-time and half-cocked. He has no enemies because he simply isn't worth the trouble. All that happens next is that he is neutered, left in his world of tweeting and big signatures whilst the gray figures in charge keep things running, more or less. He is meaningless. A failure.
13
Let Trump be a cranky, confrontational and chaotic figure-this will simply solidify his base.Democrats need to move forward energetically with solutions to health care, child care, wages and pensions-everything which is important to the electorate .They need to know that Democrats are working for them and not wallowing in all the Trump misbehavior.They , The Democrats, have to project brighter, fairer days ahead.
26
@JANET MICHAEl Try say immigration which is their business, infrastructure that is their business. Child care is none of their business, wages and pensions none of their business, and they won't solve health care they already tried and failed. There are better days ahead if congress would actually allow the president to do his job.
1
@vulcanalex
And HOW exactly has Trump been not able to do his job? His executive order pen has been very busy for two years.
1
No matter what the outcome Trump was going to twist this to serve his ego. Why is anyone surprised, though, that Barr tells us that Mueller didn’t find a “chargeable conspiracy” count against him? Barr was specifically put into the AG’s position because he already had expressed the view that very little could be found against the Executive. This totally flips the lessons of the Nixon era because it says that the Executive is exempt before it is even charged.
Didn’t anyone pay attention to Michael Cohen’s testimony? Trump is never direct about asking for what he wants. He never signs anything that directs others in anything but the most general direction. He talks the same way: generalities, vague terms, nothing that would pin him down to taking a stand that might require him to action in a real and personal way.
That he knew about all the interactions between his team, including his children, and Russian operatives of many levels is incontrovertible because it was revealed by Trump himself, in public, on TV. Apparently knowing about these interactions doesn’t constitute a “crime,” and of course, he doesn’t cover himself in glory by not notifying the FBI that some people working for him also were working with the Russians.
So how dumb is the American public? . . . . .VERY. They have seen 2+2 on their TV screens but their love for the guy who channels their resentments makes them blind to how he is also destroying their democracy.
15
@B. Rothman
Agree completely with you but please do not include all Americans in that same dumb lump. Loads of us recognize what Trump is and are disgusted that he is in OUR Oval Office taking a big dump on our nation. Putin must be so bursting with pride at his clever work. Don’t forget, Trump LOST the popular vote in a big way. Those electoral college votes who went rogue did us all a big disservice by not honoring the voters wishes. SDNY please give us justice as soon as is prudent.
1
The outcome of the Mueller Report, and Barr's interpretation of it does not change the fact that the we have a president who is an unfit, corrupt, con man who consistent divisiveness is a great peril to the US democracy.
21
What I find is that our government is based on people in high office having integrity and honesty. We have a president who lies constantly while he's stuffing his pockets along with his adult children.
William Barr comes in and makes a decision that he has determined in a 38 hour time frame that lets a rogue president off the hook. From every thing I've read and heard is that this decision historically was not the Attorney General's to make.
Sorry to say I think Barr is a wolf in sheep's clothing. I think Matt Whittaker at least showed that he's a partisan hack. I think Congress needs to question Barr under oath. I think everyone wants this nightmare to end unfortunately Barr's report did not clear anything up.
13
Trump never faced Mueller because he is a coward and his lawyers knew he would blow it with Mueller. He is a coward because he hides behind others to fire people, He is a coward because he is a bully who cannot accept criticism. He is coward because he uses his money and position to threaten others who do not support him, He is a coward because he lies about everything to prevent people to know who he truly is. He shows no respect for anyone who is not a bully and an authoritarian .
He shows his weakness by acting tough yet his toughness is an empty shell. He has no loyalty to anyone and anything. Everything he touches turns to dust. He preys on others weakness, fear and rage. He lives in constant fear of being found out for who he truly is... he does not face his fear but in the end that fear will do him in.
21
Ah, to eat breakfast on a lovely early-spring morning, to the wonderful crunching sound in the background of the New York Times, among many others, eating a very large helping of crow. A crunch of wing bone here, a "phisssshing" noise of feathers being swallowed there, the oily purplish-black of the beast itself, no doubt distressing under the knife. And yet, my breakfast is....delicious! The morning, serene and calm! The atmosphere, flavorful and stimulating! Robert Mueller turns out to be Elliot Richardson in disguise, a man of conscience, nearly a saint, who has bravely stood up to the powers that be and whose name will go down in history. Oh, the glory of it, the pleasure -- the cascading Niagara of laughter!
5
@BostonReader But what's the war on his enemies about, is that going to be as legitimate a use of the legal system as was his investigation? Not likely.
Enjoy your justice obstructing president while he lasts then...
1
Bring it on Don—you and your nefarious Apple Dumpling Gang of bumbling crooks got nothing on State attorneys general and criminal investigations into your tax dodging, insurance fraud and and whatever else crawls out from under those soon overturned rocks. One way or another—incompetent or criminal—you're forever one of the worst presidents ever.
17
In the news here, Russia just put two airplanes with 90 troops in Venezuela to possibly extract the gold.
4
@AC Grindl
Indeed ... a very important event ignored whilst we concentrate on an orange monkey.
This is Democrats' fault for not fighting back.
We are at the lowest point of the republic.
2000 republicons literally stole the election. No fight from Dems.
2016 with putin's help republicons stole electoral college. No fight from Dems.
2020, Dems will be surprised when it happens again.
Fight, already. Or say goodbye to Democracy. Which is already gone.
Peaceful transfer of power? Not from repugs. Don’t be surprised in 2020 when there is no peaceful transfer.
4
It ain’t over till its over Mr. Trump, I wouldn’t be too upbeat about this yet. The opposition to your corrupt administration will continue as will the investigations into all those skeletons in your closet. Our national soap opera and its lead villains role in it will continue until its inevitable cancellation. After all its never about “reality” where the Donalds concerned, like your cheap wine and overpriced condos and the misguided individuals who buy them its the “branding” that counts not the marginal quality. Sad, we bought a pig in a poke, what fools some of us are.
9
Trump should keep his mouth closed and actually do something presidential. We are all exhausted by him and his winner/loser attitude. But now we are in for more obnoxious behavior. How much more of this can we take?
16
@Birdygirl Hopefully you can't take anything more. The president is doing plenty that is presidential, just not by your arrogant standards.
Well, I dunno. Six years?
Now that we have seen the trailer, I can't wait to see the whole Mueller movie.
6
What an opportunity Mr Trump. You have been cleared of charges of collusion. Why not for the good of our country declare a truce with your “enemies” and attempt to reunify our nation. Please just give us an opportunity not to hate you.
9
It’s a shame that our country has to go through a thoroughly inept and wholly unqualified presidency, to say nothing of the corruption.
11
Where does all this press mea-culpa come from? Trump merely glides into ultra-radical, pro-Russia, vindictive mode, from semi-radical vindictive. IvanKushner, off to Russia, which now gloats. Good-bye Sanctions, hello Moscow Sauna. Manafort will be prancing into his arms, give it a month. Other indicted cronies will surround him like a zombie bodyguard. His Fox base expects it and wants it. Trump now calling for a witch-hunt against the media. Time for all media to cut off his oxygen. Report ON the criminal, don't be a megaphone for crime.
6
Democrats and the MSM tried to overturn an election. They failed. This is a good day for America.
5
The Russians interfered with our election process-everybody knows that. Mr Trump gave many indications that he approve f and encouraged That interference. Therefore, it is a good day in the country that this possible crime was so thoroughly investigated. Now we need to continue the administration of justice by thoroughly parsing the evidence that the president did or didn’t obstruct justice. Nothing suggests anyone tried to overturn an election
1
@M Um, the Mueller investigation had nothing to do with Democrats or the MSM. There was no attempt by Democrats to overturn the election. Mueller is a Republican, appointed by a Republican to investigate Russian interference in the election, which has been well established, and possible collusion with some Americans inside or outside the Trump campaign. He failed to turn up any evidence for the latter.
The MSM owes the country an explanation and probably an apology. This "investigation" was a farce from the start. For two years plus the Democrats have refused to accept the results of the election and they and the Press have created a atmosphere of hate and distrust among the American people. Now both don't want to accept the report of a largely Democrat group of "investigators" led by Mueller who have found no collusion. You praise yourself as "journalists" but refuse to accept responsibility for your unjustified accusations. Time to get back to the country's business. We are falling radically left. Even further left than the Socialist icon, Russia. How ironic.
3
Trump and his campaign's team probably did not collude with Russia because Putin had no interest in this collusion. Trump and his team were so ignorant and incompetent that they would have jeopardised the whole Russian hacking operation against Hillary Clinton. Maybe no collusion, but still remain and worsen the ignorance, incompetence and discrace of this President. In the end, it will be a good thing that the next Presidential election in 2020 will decide what is the future of this presidency.
6
Time for the democrats to show some statesmanship and turn to the long term existential issues. This legal witch hunt is beginning to become an embarrassment, and you need to attract a few dispicables.
2
@John Ayres This "legal witch hunt" was conducted by Republicans, not Democrats. It was initiated by Republicans, not Democrats.
Having watched from the sidelines since 2016, I've decided I'm very scared of the anti-Trump people. They seem like bloodthirsty zombies -- mindlessly moved to attack. There is no scenario other than getting rid of Trump where they would acquiesce. It's a state of war mindset where defeating the opponent is the goal, not running the country. If they weren't so cruel, snarky, arrogant, sanctimonious and vicious -- like killer ants -- they could be tolerated. But like with zombies in the movies, the only way to deal with them is to wall-yourself off from the jerks.
7
@ david
Having watched from the sidelines since 2016, I've decided I'm very scared of the Trump people...
There. Fixed it for you.
3
Muller, “while this report does not conclude that the president committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him”
Trump, “There was no collusion with Russia,” he declared. “There was no obstruction and — none whatsoever. And it was a complete and total exoneration.”
I’m absolutely sick of this corrupt liar. We receive a four page letter? Are you serious? And now this corrupt piece of garbage declares yet more war and misery on the American people who disagree with him. While his followers cheer on the suffering.
I think the leadership in this country truly wants rule by petty tyrants or violence in the streets.
11
The results of the mid-term elections show that the Mueller report is neither the be-all nor the end-all. Mueller reports. The people vote [if the Russians can be kept from interfering]
4
@jdoe212
So if Democrats win Russia didn't interfere, but if they lose, then of course, Russia interfered again? Got it.
Complete exoneration? A lie. Mueller says precisely the opposite.
Obstruction of justice? Trump has almost admitted that he impeded the investigation in order to "defend himself."
He obstructed justice.
Because of Barr's notorious 18-page memo that basically got him his present job, we already have a taste of specious legal reasoning that it will take to get around the fact that, I repeat, the president obstructed justice.
16
@Tristan T
I meant to say "Barr says precisely the opposite."
Progressives can take comfort in the fact that if we are capable of making Donald Trump a sympathetic figure, then we are capable of anything.
3
When Mueller says "this report . . . does not exonerate [the president]," what exactly does that mean? Does not exonerate him from what?
4
@Michael Walker Obstruction of justice, specifically.
This report shows trump has no managerial skills or leadership qualities. trump is still the person he always was a person with no compassion, no empathy, no remorse and who admires and worships ignorance. trump has no integrity, no ethics and no morality
The trump “people/negotiating” skills are lying, bullying, threatening, and making vile cruel untrue personal attacks unpeople. trump admires ruthless dictators and approves of murder as an appropriate strategy especially if it increases wealth.
The trump business model was enticing investor money, moving it around in holding companies and using lawyers to use bankruptcy to“legally” steal the money which is why US banks stopped loaning trump money.
The trump agenda is to put himself in authoritarian control of the country. trump does not introduce legislation rather he sits on the side line and bullies, threatens and uses tariffs and executive proclamations because he never has to have a coherent policy to support them.
trump has engineered the degradation of US influence and power around the world and is giving world leadership to China. And that all will continue while trump continues to attack and destroy the level of communication, degrades civil relations and continues to pit American against American for his personal agenda.
17
Despite Robert Barr's success in accomplishing Trump's goal of castrating Mueller, the words from Robert Graves "I Claudius" resonate and give me some hope. "Let all the poisons that lurk in the mud, hatch out."
Despite the success of this move by Trump's lackey, Barr, Trump will get just what he deserves.
13
Here's why Trump is unfit to be president. After a careful, competent, fair investigation, it is found that a case against him can't be made in court. He claims this proves him innocent, which only shows how ignorant he is of the law. Instead of appreciating the fair treatment, his thoughts go immediately to revenge on his "enemies." I have thought all along that we the people must save ourselves from Trump, a sad case of a life form gone wrong. We will deliver our judgment in due time.
16
It may be time to follow through on the president's wishes. Let's investigate those who launched this probe. Let's investigate why Jeff Sessions recused himself. Let's not forget to investigate Hillary (again). Let's investigate the business dealings of Trump and Muller to discover why Mueller was out for revenge. Of course we can't forget to investigate the 12 ANGRY DEMS who worked with Muller.
And, finally, let us also investigate Saturday Night Live. Readers should be encouraged to add to the list anyone who Trump believes should be investigated. In fact, anyone who voted against Trump in 2016 and anyone who voted for a Democrat in 2018 should be on the list. Perhaps only when all of those people have been thoroughly investigated will we be able to see what a real witch hunt looks like.
3
“Declares victory and war upon his enemies.” And this is how a dictator behaves, not a President.
13
I give better than 50% odds that Trump is re-elected.
The Mueller Report , finding no smoking gun in Trump's hands, after nearly 2 years, is exactly what his base is waiting for . Mueller has proven to be just a Witness for the Prosecution - a shadow of a threat that only focused and energised his base.
We may be stuck with this crook for much longer.
5
With Trump's misreading of the 'Barr' Report, now he can get to doing what he does best: destroying the United States of America.
7
Even after the good news (for him), Trump continues to show Americans how odious he really is with threats to go after Dems.
"No collusion!" will not make up for the lies, insults and incompetence we continue to see every day with this president.
13
Put Trump under oath before Congress.
4
So Trump 'declared war on his enemies'? This is now getting pathological. Where and when did he supposedly do this? Talk about a flat learning curve....
13
Trump's integrity has gone up a thousand fold. The Dems look like royal crying buffoons. Their integrity is non existent. This has clinched the election for Trump. He has and will prevail. The strongest man I know. He has accomplished much even with this noose around his neck. Watch him accelerate now. The Dems just set a fire under him. Retribution will be intense, NYC Trump style. Bravo, Mr. Great President !!
3
It’s pretty funny to see anybody accuse this guy of “integrity,” at all. Anyway, thanks for the loudmouthed threats, always a pleasure.
4
Wow- what a surprise.
Barr auditioned for this job by condemning the Mueller investigation so, of course, he got the AG job since he said exactly what Trump wanted to hear.
Now, the Barr whitewash is upon us.
The entire Mueller report needs to be seen by every American.
Mueller needs to testify before Congress.
This is not over regardless of any victory DT claims.
Moreover, there is SDNY and other investigations just starting to ramp up.
12
Mr. Trump, when are you going to lift the sanctions on Russia?
When is Trump Moscow hotel going to get started?
Isn’t this all part of the Deal?
When shall we rename the Senate to the Politburo?
5
Of course Trump's going to strut and crow. Let's hope he doesn't do anything worse. Now that he's unleashed, the mad dog may decide to seek revenge against his critics and adversaries. Who knows what this vain, petty, vindictive man is capable of?
5
The whole Russian collusion nonsense was nothing but high-end intellectual birtherism, by people who should know better.
6
We have basically established a new "constitution" of one man government.
What concerns me most is that historically, those who have such power, rarely give it up, merely because they might, or do, lose the next election.
13
@Tony Reardon
Bigger threat is what happens when he wins. We heard that tune already about 'if he loses', didn't we? What did we get instead? The left obstructed and refused to accept the results didn't they? So now you really question what will Trump do? He will do what his voters expect him to do and go back to his very nice and wonderful life. He had a pretty nice life BEFORE he ran, didn't really expect to win but you dems gave him that Gift of Hillary and he did. So worry about yourself please not what someone who has a proven record of doing what he says he will do, will do.
@GregP
I'm not a Dem.
And doing what you said you'll do doesn't matter. It's what you do that does.
None of this changes the fact that Trump has engaged in the most divisive rhetoric of any president in modern history, has altered the political conversation in this country in a way that most of us thought unimaginable, and continues to spout lie after lie after lie, all without remorse. No rational person will conclude that he is innocent. His crimes will eventually catch up with him.
17
I predict that the primary fallout from the Mueller report will be the continued division in America over Trump as president.
What does a democracy do when they have an unpopular minority president supported by less than one half of the citizens?
This can only make the country more cynical about government than it already is!
5
With 34 indictments and 6 convictions this administration stands out as one of the most criminal since the Nixon era. Trump and the GOP should be careful not to be overly enthusiastic about the numbers. The Congress should continue their investigation into obstruction and Trump's financial ties to Russians.
12
Ironically, the Mueller investigation could prove unhelpful in getting rid of Trump because he will now seek to characterize it as giving his entire Presidency a clean bill of health and legitimacy in circumstances where nothing could be further from the truth.
4
If there is anything we learned about Trump during his reign of terror is that he is skilled at avoiding direct links to any potentially illegal activities. The summary of the report does not surprise me. Sadly, it will just continue the division between the parties and thus the nation.
3
I hope those who tried to undermine Trump are subjected to two (or more) years of the same treatment at Trump's hands.
2
@Decent Guy I understand your feelings here, after witnessing the scores of hearings and investigations of Hillary Clinton and 8 years of Republican congressional obstruction against President Obama. But "revenge" is not how a functioning democracy works. And I think that you are conflating the Justice Department declining, at this point, to pursue obstruction charges with "proof" that your guy is innocent of manipulating people into breaking the law on his behalf. For the good of the country, I am advocating that the entire report of the Special Counsel be released and that the various committees of Congress that are constitutionally charged with Executive Branch oversight fulfill their responsibility.
2
In the "looking for silver linings" department, the quirk about human nature is that anger often motivates more than happiness. When Clinton was impeached, to the surprise of many he sailed to re-election in 1996, in part because of the anger Democrats felt at his being railroaded.
With the release of Barr's letter there does seem much for Republicans to crow and be happy about, and much for Democrats to feel angry and believe they were robbed of justice. Nancy Pelosi would be smart to now categorically take impeachment off the table - further angering Democrats - as a way to motivate them to the polls in 2020. The election of 2020 will not be about changing minds but about GOTV.
1
Self-victimization, the true art form of American politics: "- How can you do this against your president?", "The horror, the horror the poor man has had to suffer."
And as this silences most of the critique from the democrats, Trump and his followers will be shouting "exoneration" even louder than they have shouted "no collusion". The taunting of liberals and democrats from the podiums and from the White house, from the new stands, and the whole politically come wrestling circus will know no bounds. The partisanship, anguish and even hatred between the two sides will just grow even more. So easily conducted by the divider in chief. The loudspeakers just got turned to 11, and the mute button is now broken.
And with upcoming investigations and public hearings by the dems in congress, the continuation of investigations in the district courts, there is more bad news to come, and will keep the pressure on the president. And his mouth and twitter-thumbs will surely not find rest any time soon.
The show will go on... The audience is suffering.
2
The problem with all this is that Trump, as always, will declare total innocence and go on an aggressive campaign against anyone not in agreement with that. His shallow base, who gets its news from Fox, the President’s PR agency, or from his sound bites, will surely conclude the poor man was a victim and admire his backbone once again.
The more subtle aspects, as discussed in the Times editorial board opinion, will be completely lost on his base. If anything, all this strengthens his 2020 position, which, collusion or not, is a terrible prospect for America. While the Midwest floods up to rooftops and other far more important issues than his tweets go on daily, our “President” will be busy tweeting his ridiculous instant thoughts that make him look superior or denigrate others who do not share his view.
He has no long-term policies he can define, his tariffs are hurting US businesses, his infatuation with other dictators is strengthening all of them as it weakens America, and he fails to see that Russia, China and N. Korea all aim to overtake our position as a world leader as he makes enemies out of long-standing allies and emboldens our enemies. His ego and constant need for attention and applause cause him to act against the best of interests of America. Trump remains, in my view, the worst example of a President in US history, and his newly-empowered blustering will be stomach-turning.
8
There's irony aplenty in the public reactions so far about the "Mueller Report" that none of us has seen yet. Dems who are castigating the OSC for not publishing evidence of criminal behavior by the President also fiercely defend James Comey for failing to prove that Hillary Clinton committed any crimes in the Benghazi Affair or the EMail Affair. GOPs who claim that lack of proof to convict the Pres. still scream bloody murder that Hillary also escaped any kind of prosecution. The President who last month was tweeting that the OSC was loaded with Dems out to find indictment material, but now is crowing that the OSC "completely exonerates" him (Can't have it both ways). We're being told that the OSC wasted $25 million on the investigation, although it seems to have caused collection of $27.8 million in fines from agents of the Trump Campaign. Imagine making a profit from the investigation!
5
I guess it's open season for hacking Trump and RNC emails. As long as it's a foreign actor doing it, and Democrats only ask them to in a joking way on national TV.
2
@Chris Well, of course. The GOP would never do anything like that. They got tired of (and almost caught) doing that in the last election.
It is tragic to see that the Democratic party identified itself completely with Hillary Clinton’s complaint that she did not loose against Trump but against the Russian secret service. Since then Democrats got stuck with this narrative and have failed to develop a coherent political programm as an alternative to Trump. Forgotten that Hillary Clinton called rebellious workers in the economically strained rustbelt „deplorables“ and that she did not tackle the homemade manipulators of social media like Breitbart news and their rightwing financiers ? That’s why she lost. Russia just seemed too convenient a scapegoat. What is also very much needed for the Democrats is an overhaul of American foreign policy. John Mearsheimer’s new book „ Liberal Dreams and International Realities“ could give some good guidelines to move away from the regime change policy of the past. All this is in limbo because of the Democrat's russophobia. My admiration for Mueller that he did not get intoxicated with this hype.
1
@C.O.
Hilary won the popular vote, which means more of us supported her.
2
But, the electoral college is still in place, and Trump knows how it works. He was likely as shocked as anyone else when he won the last election. Now it has gone to his head. He will do anything necessary to win in 2020. He knows how the key states work - Michigan, Pennsylvania, Florida, Ohio. He will promise them anything they want to hear. He already has the infamous “base” locked up. The Coast states will vote against him. But, as we have seen, popular vote is almost irrelevant. If people in those key states stay uninformed or listen to his tweets and rally speeches, he’s in till 2024. A frightening proposition.
Just imagine Trump as a lame duck. The entire second term would be devoted to egocentric, narcissistic rallies, even though he would not stand for reelection. It would be one big retirement tour, as for a famous retiring sports star, during which he would gloat and nominate himself for every possible international accolade.
In the light of day, none of this passes the smell test. Nothing he does passes the smell test.
11
For two years the Democrats have called Trump a traitor, a mole, a Russian puppet. And now the investigation they all wanted, the one they were so afraid that Trump would stop, would end in a " Saturday Night Massacre" is one big nothing burger. The president deserves his victory lap. And now the attempts of the Democrats to hang their hats on the tiny hook of obstruction over a president exercising his legitimate constitutional powers where there was no underlying crime is absurd politically even if legal scholars could try to make an argument. This president seemed less than even money to win reelection a week ago, but with this report and the Democratic response it is looking way better. The Democrats should be looking to making their case for 2020 on their vision for America, focusing on this report just about guarantees a Trump second term.
2
We now know something of the Mueller report and it is certainly a disappointment given the obvious filth of Trump. But Michael Cohen described best what Mueller confronted. Trump is skilled in speaking in a certain way to send a message without explicitly saying so. If Mueller could not find sufficient evidence to meet a high legal bar, he certainly found sufficient evidence to conclude that he could not exonerate Trump. We already know much of that evidence but it is suggested that more is contained in the full report. It must be released. What remains unchanged and unchallenged is the moral depravity of Trump, a reality which we the people will be responsible for correcting, or not.
52
Trump Unbound? After such a close call with the law, normal people would feel chastened. Something tells me this will not be Trump's response. If anything, Trump knows there won't be another special council, at least not until his next term. With no adults watching him, what will he do?
14
@DB
Next term?
Based on what.
When you obstruct you block the truth from coming out.
This is helped by surrounding yourself with the people who work for the current regime.
You handpick the Republican Attorney General what did you expect him to do. His conclusions need to be looked at based on the facts in the Report, which should be released.
There is not a person speaking on behalf of the current regime that can be believed or has any credibility.
The Republicans already lost the House; next the Senate.
4
I think we all can guess what he will do. His constant Tweets will because me even more aggressive. He will feel less compelled(if that is even possible) to act with any degree of decorum when tweeting about his adversaries. He will seek even less advice from anyone (again, if that is even possible) when making a decision. He will feel unbridled in his relationships with the darling Kim, Putin and Xi.
And, in true form, it will be all about HIM for the next two years, as the US stagnates.
4
@DB Normal people would express gratitude that they live in a country that is still governed by law, in spite of Trump's ceaseless efforts to destroy the justice department and his disrespect of the courts. The people, the majority of whom are not Trump fans, will render their judgment of him in due time.
2
Narcissists can't bear to be "crossed." Speaking of moving against the opposition, Charles Pierce wrote an interesting article that ends with this food for thought:
"The president is steadily ramping up his rhetoric, and each time he does, he brings the seemingly impossible one step closer to possibility. He will marshal all the resources he has to stay in office, because it looks increasingly likely he could be indicted by state or federal authorities when he leaves. He has waged war on the rule of law, an independent system of justice, the free press, the separation of powers—any institution of our republic that might check his power. He has never hesitated to sacrifice anyone to save his own skin. What else is he capable of before it's all over?
A rebuke from some Republican senators today on his phony national emergency declaration is a scant reprieve for the republic, particularly when dozens—including those who originally said they'd oppose the declaration—went along with his naked assault on the Constitution. The president declared an emergency that does not exist to seize money not appropriated by Congress, and most Republicans went along with it. He will put this nation to the test, and it increasingly looks like political violence could be part of the equation. Of course, he'll claim he can't imagine why anyone would do such a thing."
31
So what happens when a starkly autocratic and quite possibly corrupt man in the presidency is supported by an attorney general willing to stake his legacy on the exclusive and “absolute” power of the presidency to stop justice department investigations—even when they concern president himself?
What if we have a president who truly is compromised to a foreign power? One who may be financially indebted to that power by so many hundreds of millions he advances its goals to the detriment of our country’s own? By our attorney general’s logic, Congress is the only avenue for checking such abuse. But what if our congresspeople look the other way for fear of losing their own personal fiefdoms? What it they are even willing to cede the presidency much of their own constitutional power? And what if, in the meantime, a possibly corrupt president has packed the third branch of government with those so partisan they are also willing to subrogate their own power to his?
In the "grand experiment" that is the American republic our framers placed foremost power in Congress, its government’s “first” branch, in order to avoid a monarchy. But the ultimate success of that experiment depends on the integrity of those congresspeople, on their willingness to act on behalf of the republic as a whole, rather than in the interest of partisan power. And without such vision, such courage, such spine, Congress may well give us something far worse than merely a king.
30
@Steel Magnolia Well put. And what's more, the irony is that the Republicans are the ones who used to claim that Obama was setting us up for his monarchy. Really?
3
@Steel Magnolia listen to Thom Hartmann progressive talk radio who has told the story of how William Barr orchestrated the pardon of Reagan and HW Bush and helped facilitate that HW Bush pardon many Reaganites/Bush partners in crimes.
3
Trump declares war on his enemies? When was he not at war?
31
@John Heenehan “When was he not at war?” Answer: When he had bone spurs.
13
President Trump is notoriously not a reader but now's a chance for him to elevate his game: if only he would enter "EXONERATED" in a search of the The New York Times where he would find too many stories of people wrongly convicted. There were the Central Park Five who were imprisoned from six to thirteen years. Pres. Trump wanted them executed. Or the March 22 Times article about Archie Williams who was imprisoned for 36 years because prosecutors ignored fingerprint evidence, and then fought rexamining it. Now is a time for the president to set about about seeking a bit of late justice for these people. Mr. Williams' "reward"? $7000 for each of his 36 years in prison. Others? $0. And the penalty for malicious and devious prosecutors? Nothing; no punishment.
4
A 22 month investigation into alleged Trump campaign collaboration, conspiracy and collaboration that did not lead to criminal charges is not exoneration nor a victory.
The Mueller investigation was no " witch hunt" nor was it " illegal" nor was it "harassment". And collusion is not a crime.
The President of the United States of America was clearly and credibly accused and suspected of working with a hostile foreign power in order to get elected President.
And that President has consistently accepted the denials of Vladimir Putin and his Russian intelligence agencies instead of that of American intelligence agencies findings to the contrary.
Fortunately for America and Americans Donald Trump " fights" by tweeting and speaking nicknames and slurs while watching Fox News and playing golf. Putin "fights" by sending his foes to hospitals, mental institutions, prisons, urns and coffins.
15
@Blackmamba. But he seems to envy Putin’s method.
1
Release the full report. Then we can move on to the Clinton campaign, Obama officials, a partisan FBI, the fake and partisan dossier that led to deceitful FISA warrants and everything else that put this farce in motion. I can’t stand Trump. But, the cost to the country of a justice system mucking around in any election, let alone that of the highest office, is too high a price to pay to indulge personal animus, however much deserved. Schiff, Nadler et.al. should admit defeat and move on. If not, blame their delusions and failure to read the middle for Tump’s second term.
4
It’s good for America that a credible investigation uncovered no proof of collusion between its president and an unfriendly foreign power. Now all patriots must commit themselves to unseating the demonstrably immoral, demonstrably racist, demonstrably thuggish, demonstrably authoritarian, and demonstrably incompetent Donald Trump the best way possible: at the ballot box.
15
To use Mr. Trump's own words “It’s a shame that our country had to go through this. To be honest, it’s a shame that your president has had to go through this.” With his "Birther" conspiracy claims against our then and still U.S. citizen President Obama.
9
I am afraid that President Trump will use the findings of Mr. Mueller's report to unleash his fury, hate and vindictiveness like never before. He will spend much of his time exciting his base but will he do any substantive work on behalf of the entire country he has sworn to lead? He said it is a shame that our country had to go through this matter. The real shame is that we have a commander in chief who leaves most of America wondering will he do the job required of his office or will he continue to rant and rave like a petulant child.
14
Very well written. I agree fully. The next two years will be all about letting him keep his throne. Why take any action his base would not celebrate?
1
@Howard Herman Trump's combination of narcissism, hatefulness, ignorance, and incompetence is indeed remarkable.
2
Trump will be in another intense feud with someone, or some organization, within 10 days.
6
With some luck Trump will say or do something over the next few weeks that will be an admission of guilt. Trump has been tried and convicted of nothing and thus will not be protected by double jeopardy prohibitions.
2
Re: conspiracy. Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.
8
Release the full report and the evidence.
Obstruction looms large. Keep digging.
He looks like someone who is so glad that he got away with something shady.
13
This certainly shows clearly the class of this man we are calling POTUS. Investigations are just that. This was an important and necessary investigation based upon the issues presented the government. Investigations are not "Witch Hunts". They are researches getting at the truth of deep concerns. If the President feels he is above this, he or she has no business even considering the Office of POTUS.
6
Maybe he’ll decide to be a real leader now, but I won’t hold my breath.
2
@JM He can't lead himself out of a paper bag. His own big mouth got him into trouble, blabbing to the Russian ambassador in the Oval Office, asking Putin publicly to hack Hillary's emails, etc.
1
It's astounding to think of all the people sitting in jail for minor crimes while this man continues to walk free, seemingly unaccountable to anyone. The take-way lesson is that in America crimes pays handsomely if you're rich, powerful, and can hire the right people to protect you.
12
If ever there was a time for Democrats to show restraint- it is now. The best, most prudent thing to do now is to focus on the 2020 election. Demanding that the report be made public and continuing talk of impeachment just excaserbates the divide and gives the opposition a reason to cry sore looser. If our president is guilty of anything- it will all come out eventually. The time just isn't now.
57
@NRS
Don't you think it's a good idea to see the report first? It will "excaserbate" [sic] the divide even more not to see it.
13
@NRS
"If ever there was a time for Democrats to show restraint- it is now."
No. For the Democrats to do nothing would be interpreted as validation of the Right's interpretation of what they know about the Mueller investigation's conclusions. The right-wing media would have a field day and the Dems would end up in a hopeless position prior to the 2020 election.
6
@NRS
Restraint is an excellent overall message.
However, Barr says that he made unilateral determinations about pro/con arguments regarding further action. By admitting this, Barr tacitly concedes that his letter is not a summary - and that's totally inadequate. But we must pursue an adequate accounting as quietly as possible.
4
Trump keeps grumbling that that he somehow is a victim of his own Justice Department, which he controls, and it was really Democrats who colluded with Russia. If there is evidence that a person committed a crime, the appropriate response is not name-calling tweets and veiled insinuations. The correct response is to conduct a confidential investigation and then indict the person if, under Justice Department standards, there is evidence to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Democrats should keep harping on the fact that Trump controls the Justice Department and he is not a victim.
4
When will Mr. Trump apologize to Mr. Mueller and his team for the hundreds of tweets attacking them as dishonest, politically motivated, and "conflicted"?
14
@Democritus
Mr. Trump doesn't apologize. For anything. Ever.
1
The world heard Trump state that he fired Comey because of the Russia investigation. How is that not obstruction?
Trump's problem is that you might get away with one crime, but when your entire life is packed with criminal activity, you'll eventually go down. The 17 cases pending against him aren't going away- unless he can completely take over this democracy; and he knows it. It's all or nothing now. Either we succeed in convicting him of his life of crime, or he becomes our first dictator.
13
The authoritarian takeover of our democracy is now on steroids. Hold on and good luck, everyone.
13
We liberals have been touting the rule of law for a number of years now and I believe it is time to accept the Mueller report as the final word -- otherwise we are just endlessly "investigating" Benghazi as the Republicans did.
47
@John, the Mueller report is not the be all end all of investigations into Trumps mendacity and criminality. This isn't Benghazi or any other phony republican outrage show. Trump has a history of shady deals, money laundering and other questionable activities surrounding him, playing footsies with the Russians is just a part of a much more complex puzzle. So no I don't think its time to give the great grifter a pass or accept the abridged version of the report as the final word. There's so much more "there", there.
14
@John How many indictments were there? and how many lies?
7
@John In order to accept the Mueller report as the final word, we have to actually see the Mueller report. I am not prepared to take Mr. Barr's word.
24
I am reminded of how enthusiastically the Republicans (and a disturbing number of Democrats) embraced Donald Rumsfeld's assessment that "absence of proof is not proof of absence." And the rest, as they say, is history.
I wonder that such skepticism is no longer held in high regard, and that such slogans are no longer in vogue.
28
As the district of New York comes up with more and more from the breadcrumbs left by the Mueller investigation watch closely what Barr does to either let the process continue or end it at the door of the Department of Justice (and I hope Justice prevails).
24
So because the Russian that Manafort gave polling data to, wasn’t “Russian government” its a good huh. Too bad Myeller team declines to follow through on that thread- on why Manafort gave him the polling data, as stated by Mueller team. With that unexplored and the president not interviewed this is not exoneration it is a cover up.
32
There is no pity party larger than Donald Trump's. No victim is more abused. No one can possibly feel sorrier for themselves or less appreciated or demand more sympathy and attention than Trump. He whines and whines and whines and then whines some more. There is no end to it. Self-pity is like oxygen for him, it's like an addiction. He cannot give it up. It's an appalling spectacle that the whole world witnesses, and it brings dishonor to the entire country.
96
@Ms. Pea
While I respect what you say, those who are trashed that the report disclosed what it did are already becoming as self-pitying.
2
@hotGumption Sensible citizens are pleased that a fair and thorough investigation was done. Now the NY prosecutors will follow the money and see what may be revealed.
2
@Ms. Pea
Its real simple, an innocent man would have just kept his mouth shut and let the investigation play out.
You know what I believe? This is a man who has cheated so much in his life, he FULLY expected for this to end with the report stating he cheated and conspired. Why else the constant attacks? He had no idea the investigation would be by the book, he was scared to death when the AG recused himself. He demanded cover for....what? Probably just your run of the mill money associated crimes, like Manafort. And now that he gets off, hes probably just confused and elated. But hey, thats been his life, getting away with it and endless second chances. It begs the question, if there is a higher power, why let such people continue to prosper? How many good people suffer and suffer when others like this are dealt such incredibly lucky hands?
4
"Lessons Learned" -Nothing!
A quick scan of News networks this morning have two key strategies being broadcast and/or printed.
1) Attack and defense.
2) Providing opinions on why the full report needs to be released. Including all their typical "Hypothetical" scenarios.
They all need to just state that the overwhelming number of Americans want it made public, and move on to issues concerning American families.
This is also a severe blow to "Climate Change" and those "hypothetically" concluding on circumstantial evidence. Seems the "left" has not been good judges lately, but great at jumping to conclusion.
Covington Catholic High School
Jussie Smollett
and now possibly the special Investigation.
The race to live stream "Breaking News" is creating substantial collateral damage to the transmitter, and the receiver with only one channel
2
@Bob
Not sure why or how you felt the need to bring up climate change here?
I feel fortunate you did, because it nicely illuminates the podium on which you stand.
1
@Meadowlark Lemmy - Not sure where you think I stand on Climate Change, so i will clarify. Some of us are gray on the issue, or more specifically for me, the proposed solutions.
I am definitely a "believer" that releasing millions of years of naturally sequestered Carbon into the atmosphere in a little over a century has a large negative impact on the planet.
With that said, I don't necessarily believe in the solution(s), or the path to solution(s) is to scare folks with doomsday predictions, even if they are true.
Time to engage the enemy with comprehensive debates designed to seek the truth on what we know. These debates can take place over months to ensure fact checking.
Why not? We seem to fill the airwaves with Trump (PINGS) 24/7, when we know Climate Change is so important.
@Bob - Transmitter and receiver with only one channel some like Fox News to me.
Yep. Nothing says "exoneration" like having almost everyone working for you going to prison on felony convictions, after having lied about literally every action they had taken.
187
A political candidate asking our enemy to provide damaging information against his opponent. Is this now part of the lexicon of political free speech? Did Mueller have anything critical to say about that? Does he explain why it didn't rise to the level of being criminal? For that, and many other reasons, we need to see the complete Mueller report.
For now, since our legal system won't stop this, it's up to the voters. Candidates who makes these type requests have no business winning elections.
What is wrong with our country?
56
@Martin Politics over patriotism.
3
Predictably, Mr Trump turned "...it also does not exonerate him” [Robert S. Mueller III] into "...a complete and total exoneration.” [Donald J. Trump].
For someone so perennially vocal about "fake news", he sure generates plenty of it.
30
I think Trump should just learn a lesson and shut up, because the more he talks the worse it's going to get.
Trump has a dark cloud hovering over his Presidency and virtually all of it is of his own doing, this liar can't stop himself and that is why the country needs to see the entire report and not some short summary letter by someone who doesn't believe a sitting President can be indicted or thought this investigation was not appropriate from the begging.
Think back what how people would have viewed Watergate has John Mitchell released a letter like this, and not released the investigation report to the Congress; there are no Martha Mitchell's here.
19
It is actually true that being a jerk, a liar, and a sitting president who flagrantly disregards our traditions is not committing an illegal act . But his behavior is odious, deplorable, and it warrants voting this man out of office.
The issue here is trust, and after all of his pathetic rants, his complete disconnection to reality at times, and his disgusting behavior, who in this country would even for a moment actually TRUST Donald Trump?
The issue is not necessarily about criminality although the Southern District of New York May in time, bear Donald Trump's criminal actions out. The issue is, would you in truth , trust this man with the safety, security, and well-being of this country?
25
So now the reign of terror increases with an all out attack on individuals and news organizations that recognize the enormous damage Trump is doing to our country and the world.
This is not w/o readily available examples for Trump to choose from. In Russia and China, the internet is heavily regulated to stop the flow of ideas contrary to the state. Expect challenges to free speech (aka: McCarthy) to return.
Given his "vindication", Trump will intensify his control over all aspects of government that could challenge his rule. The Trump looting machine will go into high gear now that Trump perceives increased freedom to make business deals with other countries and corporations that will enrich Trump.Org. If he couldn't be stopped with treason, Emolument violations are insignificant.
Trump will reshuffle state justice departments to neutralize their capability to prosecute him. The sponsorship of replacement congresspeople will be everywhere as Trump attempts to neuter congressional opposition.
And throughout the mayhem and subjugation about to unfold, the victor will be China as Belt and Road usurps previous partnerships Trump abrogated. This week Italy agreed to join China's plan.
Pitifully, our only hope is that the inexorable march of Climate Change will be the force causing America to wake up and excise this stage 4 cancer from our society.
12
Trump and his flunkies don’t get it, they didn’t win, the Russians did. They baited the Trump campaign with salacious gossip and stolen emails and drew them in. The resulting chaos gave Trump an edge and accomplished the Russians goal of disrupting the election and its results. Trump didn’t have to actively collude with them in order to accomplish their goals, the appearance was sufficient. So now their free to do it again. Trump never took it seriously because he benefited from it. Now they don’t dare take it seriously because of the implications for Trumps legitimacy. Trumps election like the rest of his adult life is flawed by his mendacity and narcissism, he was the perfect sock puppet for Putin. Sad
27
@John Chastain: So sorry to agree with you; the Rooskies played us like a fiddle. If they had caused Trump to cross the line into actionable criminality, our system could clean house and be rid of his stench, but he apparently did not, so we're stuck with him. Now he'll gloat and seek his revenge and weaken us even more.
Putin is probably enjoying a horselaugh and an extra shot of vodka right now.
If the President was “exonerated”, why is he so angry. As we all know he isn’t even a good “winner”!
20
The United States as you knew it might be no more. Trump will take down every every nail and every brick to slowly bring the republic down and deliver it to the 1%ers and the white supremacists.
What this terrorist faction does not realize, similar to how rulers and kingdoms throughout history didn't, is that when you stretch the rubber too thin, it will either bounce back and hurt you or break altogether. Sooner or later, white supremacists and 1%ers will realize that exclusionary, xenophobic and retaliatory practices do not make the economy hum. Once major tech corporations start jumping the ship by moving to either Europe or Canada, the US economy will be left in tatters. This country will then have mostly white people, without jobs, without much innovation and consequently, without any money. Right back to where they started in the 1600s. By then of course, there would also remain no way of turning back the clock on the effects of climate change. Oil will eventually run out and with no innovation in sight, there will be little in the way of technology to replace it.
Makes you wonder how we have not yet found any other civilization in the universe. May be they all extinguish themselves eventually. We are well on our way.
10
It is a great irony that lack of evidence of a Trump conspiracy to corrupt the election is evidence of his cluelessness and incompetence.Putin feared Clinton win, smearing & trolling until Trump clinched the nomination. The Russians then exploited their dumb asset, up to his neck in debt to them, and used their cyber sabotage & hacks for Trump’s benefit.
All the deals Trump made to please Putin were more a quid pro quo than sly collusion.
Maybe the Mueller investigation will reveal the dense thicket of entanglements, while finding no clever initiatives from a Trump.
He was too vulnerable and inept to conspire!
7
Trump and Republicans will be back to calling for another investigation of Hillary Clinton in 3...2...1...
14
Donald Trump has convinced me there is no such thing as karma.
13
@Chris M
There is. You're not looking at a happy man, contented and at peace. It's actually sad and painful to see. The contorted, pained face of a 70-y-o toddler flailing about for mommy and daddy's love and attention. Also, it's not about Mr Trump. It's all those forces which brought him to power. This is a country that is shy to look at its violent history, particularly with its minorities. We're all reaping the whirlwinds from this reluctance and fear.
1
Typical Trump... in his world, it is always "us against them". He seeks to constantly divide and attack his enemies or critics (real and imaginary).
So now the emboldened dictator wannabe will direct the DOJ to do what exactly? Take a page from the Saudis or the Russians and round-up those that dare to challenge and speak out against him.
The road to ruin just accelerated.
9
Trump's reaction to the report should come as no surprise. What is surprising is the media's claims that this is a good thing for the country. Sort of like putting lipstick on a pig.
7
One has to wonder about the conclusions drawn by Barr since he opined last year about obstruction not being relevant. Had he already made known to Trump that he would put out something similar once he received the Special Counsel's report? Is that how they managed to keep Trump quiet over the weekend, to ensure that it didn't come out that Trump already knew what the Attorney General would have to say? For a man who loudly proclaimed his innocence from the start, he was sure concerned up until the weekend about what the investigation would uncover.
Also, the scope considered of campaign cooperation with Russia was evidently very narrow since it has come out publicly that Manafort gave internal campaign data to a Russian with links to the government, just not someone directly IN the government.
Sounds like Trump just won't let this go, calling it an illegal takedown and something HE should not have had to go through, when 1) the extent and type of Russian meddling needed to be investigated and 2) the campaign's involvement made necessary by the actions of his people (Papadopoulos et al) and the fact that they felt they had to lie about their interactions with Russians from the campaign through the transition and into the administration. His literally bully pulpit with demands for counter-investigations will not be good for the country.
7
During the Lewinsky scandal, Democrats fiercely defended President Clinton against what they saw as a purely partisan attack. However, after the president was acquitted, many turned on him for putting them in a degrading position. Vice President Al Gore distanced himself from Clinton in his 2000 campaign.
Trump's supporters have defended him against multiple accusations since his election. Mueller's not finding definitive proof of collusion should free supporters from being constantly on the defensive.
We can hope this freedom will allow them the opportunity to step back and quietly examine what doubts they may have about the man. Surely they know on some level that he is a compulsive liar, a tax cheat, and an employer who cheats employees of their pay. There are many Trump policies that harm them -- a tax cut that creates an additional minimum trillion dollar debt, trade policies that harm farmers and consumers, a weakened health care system, crumbling infrastructure, the scorn of the international community, the growing power of China and India.
Finally, although most Trump supporters deny the reality of climate change, they might now consider melting glaciers, flooding in Miami, blizzards in the West, floods in the Midwest, monster hurricanes, and declining bee and other pollinating species, which support our food supply.
Trump's voters already say they don't like his Tweeting. Perhaps now they will consider the effect of policies of the Tweeter's agenda.
8
They won’t. They want everyone who disagrees with their leader to suffer. They don’t care what he does.
1
The issue for the public is simple. Did the special counsel have sufficient facts to proceed in an investigation and was the investigation conducted in accordance with due process of law?
The answer is 'yes.' The FBI raised national security concerns even before Trump was sworn in. Based on the facts they uncovered an investigation was warranted.
The fault in the investigation lies in the way in which it has been characterized in much of the media.
Russia Gate took on a life of its own well beyond those facts and was clearly being used to cover for the dramatic collapse of the DNC strategy in the last election.
Even the 'hacking' allegation of the DNC emails was characterized as clear evidence of Russian collusion.
But a closer look at the facts revealed that cyber experts could not agree on whether there was a hacking job from outside or a download by someone who had access to the server.
while this crucial evidence was ignored by most of the media, this was hardly the 'evidence' on which an indictment could be brought.
While Trump will claim vindication he will be silent on the campaign violations, the cover up, the fraudulent university he ran and the phony foundation that might have been used for tax fraud.
Those are the real facts the media has been neglecting. Maybe they will now do some real reporting rather than endless speculation on how the Russians caused Hillary to loose.
5
Neither Robert S. Mueller nor Attorney General William Barr
have said that Donald J. Trump has been exonerated ;
So being that Mueller and Barr agree that at this time no
conspiracy between Trump and Russia has been; they also agree that Trump is not exonerated either
Therefore Mueller's report is inconclusive....and this
Inconclusive and therefore UNFINISHED investigation of
Trump...has been left to Congressional hearings …
This is the beginning of the investigation into Trump
AG Barr has mis-used his position as AG by making a pre-judgment of Trump's innocence.
The Mueller Report will start a series of Congressional Hearings and the exposure of Trump's income taxes etcetera.
Full Disclosure from Congress is going to be demanded by
both Democrats and Republicans throughout our nation....
and those that don't tell the truth ...will be prosecuted.
11
I am sure this report is a big disappointment for many people. After two years of investigation and a couple million dollars at tax payer's expenses, this unexpected outcome is a shock. Why and what evidence propelled Mueller's investigation in the first place are obscured and forgotten by all. What a waste.
4
A true patriot would bury their emotions and move on for the good of the country, but we all know that Trump is anything but that.
13
The entire Mueller report needs to be released to the public so we can determine what happened. Too many questions linger. Why did so many people lie, apparently over nothing? Why did Trump constantly attack Mueller if he did nothing wrong? And, if Trump did nothing wrong, why didn't he explain it all right in the beginning? There would have been no need for the Special Counsel. The motivations and actions don't add up.
12
Surprising how many Canadians here posting about the RESULTS of a two year long Investigation. Canada's Justice Committee right now is refusing to even allow the central witness, your former AG, to finish her testimony. Thought it would be easier to question it here in a post rather than respond to each individually. When you allow an investigation into your own PM, you can criticize the results of the investigation Mr. Mueller just completed. Until then, be the polite Canadians we expect and please refrain.
3
This report is a political disaster for the credibility of the mainstream media, who never should have been political to begin with.
4
This is far from over, just the guilty pleas alone from his inner cabal is enough proof that there was collusion, clearly the report has been whitewashed - and Trump threatening to go after his "enemies" is another indication of his guilt.
8
Trump has only himself to blame for the appointment of Mueller investigation.
He caused it by the pretextual firing of Comey, the Lester Holt interview, and laughing about Comey’s firing with the Russians in the Oval Office.
And he has only himself to blame for prolonging it. He waited a year before providing written answers to Mueller.
And he has only himself to blame for the hype. After all his daily tweets reminded us every day of the inquiry.
A self-inflicted wound and a wound inflicted on the country by this man who places love of self ahead of love of country.
13
Ah, I have a quick suggestion for an antidote to "Trump despair".
After seeing that Mueller never even questioned Trump or his family yet seems to have "exonerated" the whole crew, not to mention Putin's mob, I went over to YouTube.
There, I spent an hour watching old Rowen Atkinson and Robin Williams comedy. That took the fear and anger and transformed it to tears in the eyes, the good kind.
Just saying, politics in the time of Trump working to make us a Putinesque dictatorship, well, it makes for great comedy.
We survived the Reagan times, the George W. Bush trauma, and the lies that led to the Iraq war crimes, and we will survive this, though I do fear for medicare and medicaid, not to mention low cost housing.
Hugh
5
@Hugh Massengill You have a cunning plan. Time for a rewatch of Blackadder!
Call me a stickler for logic, but how can Trump spend the better part of two years denigrating and discrediting the “witch hunt,” “total hoax” Mueller investigation, and then, suddenly, turn on a dime and laud to the heavens its purported findings and conclusions? If he has been maintaining all along that the investigation is bogus, then anything gleaned from it must be as well. Moreover, since when does a president, who ostensibly represents all of the American people, get to arbitrarily and capriciously designate a certain segment of them “his enemies”?
7
He will keep on lying about almost everything. No change there.
4
I will withhold judgement until I read Mueller's full report, not Barr's four page summary. The fact that Barr himself found that Trump did not obstruct justice was a complete surprise! I did not see that coming...
7
I was concerned when Trump got happy a few days back and felt the report would come out the way he desired.
1
Now we have an emboldened, free reign, unhinged maniac at the helm who at this very moment is drawing up an enemies list with his top soldiers....Kushner, Ivanka and Miller. The report does not "exonerate" him from being 100% unfit to lead this country. The only hope is for voters to kick him out in 2020....and that's going to be an uphill battle. The Southern District of New York is pursuing his clan's financial illegalities so perhaps someday he'll have to face the music. However, Trump continues to surround himself with thugs just like himself and what a cast of buddies it is. Mueller has charged 34 people and obtained guilty pleas or convictions for seven, with Roger Stone still to be tried. How is this "exoneration"??
9
I completely understand the reasons behind the Special Counsel, and obviously a lot of "dirt" was uncovered. Trump is using the investigation to his advantage to make himself out to be a victim. He's no victim. He's a con, a grifter, and to a large extent a reflection of all that's ugly about America. Congress has a duty to get the report and tell America what's in it.
8
This is fantastic news and it is great to see the elite, liberal globalists in a state of disbelief. The USA patriots won the 2016 election fair and square in our electoral college. Long live Democracy. Trump and MAGA 2020!!
2
We, the People, are under the relentless presence of a "President" who
was "elected" to "serve" a beautiful land of his Birth. Meanwhile, he, "Number 1", has gloried in Being the absolute Center Of Attention, while
"Serving" mainly Himself. At 82, and long-retired Licensed Family Therapist, I'm grateful to be "past it". The "President", I still contend,
is a bonafide Sociopathic Personality Disorder, proven by his own active
daily Symptomatology, including his chronic Lying. I'm grateful for the
Work of Mr, Mueller, who has Served his whole life. Meanwhile, sometimes the sanest reaction to an insane situation....is Insanity. I've
Got a Headache. I hope my Great Grandchildren have some Leadership.
6
@Richard Deforest"8
I share your headache.
Now comes the demanding Republican Party. If we thought trump was a bully before, he’s going to be 10x more now. He’ll definitely run the US into the ground. He’s got the AG in his pocket, along with the SCOTUS.
7
He needs to realize who his enemies are.
1
They can't stop lying, even when they don't have to. But it is fortunate that this "cloud" of the Mueller report -- this hovering, intriguing suggestion of a "deus ex machina" to deliver Americans from what dauntingly too many of them desperately want -- has been banished in a fusillade of peremptory misconstructions from the Attorney General. Now we can get on with the politics of what this country will be, its laws having been ineffectual.
13
As expected, Trump acted like a spoiled brat, after it held its breath to get what it wanted. The problem is, that certainly Congress will bring both Mueller and Barr to Capital Hill for testimony. Mueller, to explain why he stopped short of clearing Trump fro obstruction of justice. Barr, why he took it upon himself to clear Trump of obstruction of justice.
As it is clear, that Trump and Barr will not release the full Mueller Report to Congress, or the public; we have to hope that somehow it is leaked on the Internet. Or, Congress gets a court order to get the report. Unfortunately, we can't rely on The New York Times or Washington Post to get to the meat of this matter, like they could do in 1973, with Nixon.
Trump is running Tammany Hall South, complete with henchmen and people with strict loyalty to him. He has an iron grip on his administration and party. The GOP no longer supports the full body of the Constitution, as Trump has become the state.
The next step for Trump will be going after what he calls "the enemy of the people", prominent Democrats and any one else who harbors dissent against him.
If the House is thinking about Easter and Summer recesses , they better think twice. An embolden Trump is far more dangerous than any wounded animal. The future of this republic hangs in the balance.
23
@Nick Metrowsky
Richard Nixon said "I am not a crook".
1
Ok, mr. Mueller did not find an FSB employment contract signed 'Donald Trump'. It might save the Democrats the trouble to be obliged to start a low chance impeachtment procedure.
Remains the fact that it seems to me to be highly un-patriotic and indeed, actually downright villainous, to be in such close contact with a foreign power considered to be the enemy since decades.
Mr. Trump is no card- carying member of mr. Putin's party, no, but he certainly is a fellow-traveller of authoritarianism.
9
I plan to vote for Trump in 2020 for the following reasons:
1. To protect freedom of speech, particularly on college campuses.
2. To protect the right to bear arms.
3. To protect the presumption of innocence.
4. Out of respect for the rule of law.
10
Well at least your second reason has a ring of truth, the other three have nothing in common with Trump, especially the rule of law. But, whatever.
7
@Mark
Right to bear arms did the New Zealanders a lot of good.
6
@Mark
So your vote goes for Individual 1.
Cool.
When was the last time you were on a college campus, Mark?
Your #4 is a joke, given the lying to your face regarding the philandering and the 'catch and kill'.
But we've come to expect this sort of mischaracterization both by Trump, and his 'supporters'.
6
Trump apparently is lacking any good sense when it comes to constraint. But then did anyone really believe for even a moment that he would not invite even more reason for his doubters and haters to double down? Regardless of the end result of one investigation it is not the end of his legal challenges. Not even close. The man is as morally and ethically challenged as it gets, meaning he is unfit to serve. That can not be even remotely denied.
14
Trump's Mar-a-Lago "To-Do" list: 1. Tell AG how to frame findings into a list of campaign talking points (check); (2) Publish list of talking points that use the word "Exoneration" as many times as possible, closely followed by "NO COLLUSION" (always in caps)(check); (3) Celebrate integrity of process and investigators (skip this step); (4) Find and punish everyone connected to this investigation, their friends, supporters, rats, etc. (on-going).
10
Once again in his life Trump seems to be able to skate "free" after doing harm to someone. In this case the someone is America and we cannot, must not let Trump off the hook for his deeds. He is a disgrace to America for the "almost criminal" acts he has done. Maybe not criminal acts but certainly immoral to say the least.
I'll wait for the full report to see what Mueller has actually said, but the conclusions of the report if accurate seem that Mueller did not want to be the enemy to anyone. How can you spend 18 months or so and not give a conclusion either way; up or down. This non answer is the worst way to leave it.
12
Nothing says "complete and total exoneration" like:
*Trump National Security Adviser Mike Flynn convicted of lying to FBI about his acting as a foreign agent;
*Trump Deputy Campaign Manager Rick Gates convicted of conspiracy against the U.S. and lying to FBI;
*Trump Foreign Policy Adviser George Papadopoulos convicted of lying to the FBI about his contacts with Russian agents;
*Trump Personal Attorney Michael Cohen convicted of lying to Congress about Trump's ongoing efforts to build a hotel in Moscow; and (lest we forget)
*Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort convicted in two courts of conspiracy against the U.S. and conspiracy to obstruct justice.
And with the likes of Roger Stone and others still unresolved, but all likely headed for prison! If this is what "complete and total exoneration" looks like, it doesn't look very good.
35
Total exoneration? Reading is fundamental.
9
Well, we do indeed live in interesting times. Trumpists have begun already to hail the summary of the report as sweeping exoneration of Mr. Trump, which it is not. The 2016 election has been a victory for Putin beyond his wildest dreams and Mr. Trump remains a time-bomb (albeit not a colluding one) buried in the core of the American government. In a wry turn of fate he seems able to dream up by himself more sweeping catastrophes that Putin could imagine. Much more stands to be revealed about Mr. Trump's activities in the months ahead. The key is to remain focused on the purpose of these additional investigations in the face of what is sure to be a triumphalist tirade.
7
The President’s frustrations are well justified. His vindication is deserved. And, continuing to point out the perpetrators seditious acts is in full service to all citizens of the United States.
The responsibility of Comey, McCabe, Page, Storzk, Orr, etc. at the FBI,; the compliant FISA ( and apparently non-curious and indifferent at being lied to) judges, members of the intelligence community such as Clapper, Susan Rice, Samantha Powers; attorney general Loretta Lynch; and, dare it be true, President Obama himself should be completely investigated and, if appropriate, the responsible scoundrels who put this country through the last two years should be tried, convicted and punished for their actions.
4
Sure go for it!
Face it America - you elected this man, fair and square.
3
@Richardfair and square? More than 3,000,000 votes more for Hillary send a different message!
1
@Richard
Proud to do it.
1
@Richard
And its a crying shame, too.
Okay, I'll believe too stupid to collude.
The obstruction of justice charge is still open for question. Mueller apparently punted. Did he think Congress should take up the issue? AG Barr seems to have stepped in to finally decide the issue but was that his to call? We will have to wait again to find out.
What I am afraid of is Trump's lust for vengeance. The GOP is frothing for another HRC investigation and Trump wants to add Obama now and others who conducted the 'witch hunt'.
Are we now in an endless cycle of partisan investigations? The GOP won't let HRC go.
I don't want to turn into a bitter and hateful Dem as those in the GOP are towards HRC. We all need to let certain things go or finish. Mueller's non conclusion regarding obstruction was frustrating but here we are.
Donald Trump is now 'embolden' and angry. Now that's scary.
4
No surprise to hear my co Democrats flailing at the Mueller findings. Like sheep we have followed our emotions raw from a Hillary failure down the wrong rabbit hole. Led by a media who preys on our emotions once again our greatest political desires have failed. We chased the wrong crime folks. Money laundering with foreign nationals and criminals were easily proven and come with significant penalties. I’d suggest we all put on our grown up pants, and use our brains before our hearts, but when I do my fellow party friends begin shrieking. We need to move on to real issues or face another 4 years. Folks we gave him an easy one. We look like amateurs here. Perhaps we are.
7
Trump will not rest until he exacts outrageous Revenge. He depends on it to protect, empower, enrich, and entertain himself. He will continue to invoke these investigations as a means to further delude, inflame, and exploit his supporters.
9
Trump and his family deserve some payback. The Democrats have no one to blame but themselves.
2
@Greg There is no exoneration here. He is 100% unfit to lead this country regardless of what the report says. It changes nothing.
6
Now, the arrests start. Who will be disappeared first? Will we even know?
5
well trump was investigated by the "merry bunch of democrats" as the republicans said. So, the democrats found no collusion. Mueller left up to the AG about obstruction, this will come down to the statements trump made critizing the investigation, which is not obstruction.
Can't even collude. Sad.
So, what date do you have in the office pool as to when Putin will visit the White House? I have May 1st.
10
We can only hope that, emboldened by what his personal reality tells him — that he has been rendered an untouchable god — that he fully indulges the voices and demons in his head and puts his mental illness on such full and untethered display that he makes himself unelectable. Maybe.
27
Honest-to-God, is Donald Trump the luckiest man on the planet? He has never worked at a real job or had a real career his entire life. He had a $413 million line of credit from his Dad that softened the 6 bankruptcies when he took his businesses down the hole.
He sleeps with porn stars and has love affairs with Playboy Playmates.
He gets out of the draft and avoids Vietnam because of a ghostly "bone spur" and he cannot remember which foot was affected.
And he rises to the position of leader of the free world and is now the most powerful man on the planet.
This is his American Dream that has turned into the country's nightmare, and now that Robert Mueller has not provided the means to begin impeachment proceedings against him, he is solidly locked into the Oval Office, where he will continue to do untold damage to the country.
When will his luck run out?
193
@Len
I wonder about the same every day. How can one get this lucky? That too when lot of people are punished for far far less..
41
@Len I hope his luck runs out before ours does.
44
@Len remember the moral: "if you have everything, you have everything to lose".
11
A round of golf here, a round of golf there....plotting on how to split the country even more. If Trump had "any" class he would not be chortling with joy and accept his prize and march forward to heal the country. Oops that ain't gonna happen. He is going grind his heel into the wound. He can't help it. His neuroticism demands that he kick when his opponent is down. Case in point....John McCain. Heaven help us...Teflon Don wins again. But as my grandmother used to say in Spanish "no one ever leaves this earth without paying your dues"....
12
The real irony is Trump leaned his tactics from tough old school New York democrats. It's why the only person who could take down President Trump was President Obama who learned from tough old school Chicago democrats.
In the meantime the democratic party has been taken over by rich elite out of touch millionaires, out of touch legacy politicians like Cuomo, corrupt globalists like Menendez more concerned with foreign countries, extremist out of touch with reality and YouTube cartoon characters like Maxine Waters.
None of them have any real contact with the democratic base or the public. Regardless of what you think about Trump he knows how to reach his voters and he is actually using strategies once used by democrats. If democrats want to beat Trump they better come out of their mansions and gated communities to reach voters.
11
If Mueller's investigation was a "hoax," as Trump repeatedly claimed over the past two years, is the "complete and total exoneration" he is now celebrating also a hoax and he really is guilty of collusion and obstruction of justice? I for one still think so. There were more than 100 contacts with Russians by Trump, his relatives and aides during the campaign and after his inauguration. His son-in-law tried to set up a secret back channel of communications with the Kremlin. His campaign manager gave polling data to a Russian agent. Trump delayed, stalled and hedged on Russian sanctions, then lifted them on companies owned by a Russian oligarch close to Putin. And Trump continued trying to build a Moscow tower after he became president. How much more evidence did Mueller need? Secondly, Mueller did not exonerate Trump of obstruction of justice, he left that open, and Barr took it upon himself to declare Trump innocent. He had no business nor authority to do so. In fact, he should have recused himself from such a decision because he was a presidential appointee, was clearly biased and had previously published an opinion saying no president can be charged with obstruction. This is a case of the bad guy wins and it's a sorry day for our country.
49
Trump's response is just as expected.
16
And what aspect of the Mueller investigation was illegal? He was illegally appointed? He abused his powers? He broke which laws?
8
When pigs fly - or when Muller's entire report is released to the public - I'll believe this president is not guilty of obstruction of justice.
13
William Barr says that “the investigation did not establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government Is Barr hiding behind the technicality that Kremlin operatives like Kilimnik and Veselnitskaya only unofficially represent the Kremlin. For the record, Mueller criminally indicted Kilimnik and Veselnitskaya, and they’re both currently considered fugitives.
19
Well, now I guess it is time to find out when the Obama Administration first started spying on the Trump campaign. We know there were some overtures to spy on the campaign in late 2015 by various agencies of his administration. Knowing how the Obama team used the IRS to go after political "enemies", is it any surprise? In late 2015 however, Trump was not the presumed nominee. Is it possible that his campaign was not the only one spied on by the Obama acolytes? More than likely, Obama hedged his bets and spied on other Republican candidates. It is going to be a fun two years.
4
@Norm
Everything you just said has been debunked.
7
It's awful to say this about a president of the U.S., but I have gotten to the point where I don't trust anything that Trump says.
"It's a shame that our country had to go through this," he said.
I concur.
But I'm referring to your entire presidency.
92
I agree with the comments that speak to getting on with governing. We all know that while he may not be criminally liable, he is still responsible for the actions of those around him. If he claims he didn’t know, he is unfit for the job; and we already know that. Democrats let’s not waste more time making a point. If we continue, we will lose our base and we will have him four more years.
5
I honestly would recommend that liberals do what they can to gain visas and other means to leave the country if needed. If a majority of Americans are this corrupt to support this man the writing is on the wall.
Protect yourself and your family. This country is lost. People like Trump should not be in positions of power. They drained the swamp by deregulation to fill it with sewage.
This country will not survive another term without becoming very much us against them with massive suffering for anyone who isn’t wealthy. Perfect for violence in the streets.
Good luck America. Have a plan libs. These people are totally corrupt and can’t be trusted. I have no doubt Trump and his supporters would round up people who disagree with him and cause as much suffering and misery as possible.
Barr's letter will embolden Donald Trump. When a narcissist senses a victory, he feels vindication and license to do more self- serving and dangerous things. This is why after 2 years, during which Trump has not been thwarted in his many dangerous and dishonest behaviors, they have escalated. When he denigrates the late John McCain or supports white nationalist or chooses to believe Putin rather than our intelligence agencies, we ask how bad can this get? It will now become worse until someone or something stops Donald Trump. One hopes that it is not "shooting someone on Fifth Avenue", possibly that would not be horrific enough. Recognize that people will be harmed as a result of the Attorney General's letter and political stance.
17
The report may be a bit of a nothing burger, but I have faith Robert Mueller did his job in accordance with the law. The President lacks essential decency. He's nothing but a robber baron living large. When historians write about the beginning of the end of capitalism in the United States, President Trump's robbing of the Treasury to give to the 0.1% a better life will kick off the lesson.
15
What victory? Trump has since beginning castigated the Mueller inquiry as the witch hunt. How could he vindicate himself if he necer accepted the legitimacy of the inquiry in the first place, and that too when he report is yet to be released?
11
Someone needs to be held accountable for the millions that were spent on this farce, not to mention the time that it has taken away from this administration. My guess is that the media will just move on to another made up scandal.
8
@Thomas Aquinas Nothing made up about the numerous lawsuits and investigations still pending. Nothing made up about the moral rot that is the Republican party.
33
“someone needs to be held accountable for the millions”.....
I certainly hope you feel the same way about the millions spent on Trumps golf trips to Florida and elsewhere with no end in sight. Close to 100 million for someone who crowed that he would be “too busy to play golf”
19
@Thomas Aquinas
How about Mr. Aquinas, holding the current occupant of the White House significantly responsible via (a) his selection of at least six convicted criminals on his 'team', (b) showing himself either incapable of speaking/verbalizing truthfully at least 9,000 times since his inauguration or being deliberately dishonest, and (c) heading organizations that have either been shut down or fined millions for false representations
10
Of this three will have happened:
1) It gives Trump the opportunity to go on the offense, and correctly paint his opponents as vindictive schemers.
2) It now significantly curtails the legitimacy of any other of the plethora of investigations Democrats are throwing at the president.
3) Most critically, the credibility of the mainstream media has taken a hard hit after keeping this in the front headlines while stating "proof" over and over again. It should be clear to all that it was the media's hatred of Trump, not responsible journalism, that was the main motivation to promote this incessantly for TWO WHOLE YEARS.
5
Wait a minute. Trump called Mueller "some guy who comes along and does a report". Trump said "It's always interesting to me because a deputy, that didn't get any votes, appoints a man that didn't get any votes, he's going to write a report on me.... to make a determination on my presidency? People will not stand for it." Now he claims this exonerates him. If this report is to be believed then you must accept all the other findings that have grown out of this investigation as irrefutable truth. Including the guilt of all Trumps associates to date and in the future. No Collusion does not mean Trump is not guilty of other crimes and misdemeanors.
9
Guaranteed he’s got webs in the closet. The man’s in real estate, the hotel business and is worth lots of money. Just follow that money, Get ahold of his taxes and find out exactly why he pays no personal income tax. Leona Helmsley found out that you can’t write everything off. We already know he had Michael Cohen pay for his prostitutes.
9
@Piece man He did collude with the Russian oligarchs for all we know.
5
@R. Littlejohn he sees everything as "the art of the deal" He doesn't delineate the line between business and national security (too mentally challenged) but I'm sure Putin and Xi Jinping do.
3
Wait a minute...shouldn’t all Americans be happy our President is not a Russian stooge?
3
....or be unhappy that the attorney general is a trump stooge?
10
@MD Monroe. That's a low bar. Subterranean, really. And rather specific. Take the descriptor "Russian" out of that phrase and, once again, you're off and running.
6
@MD Monroe The report did not confirm that Trump is not a Russian stooge. It just said his campaign did not collude with the Russian government to get him elected. Big difference.
7
A gut punch for democracy and the rule of law. Plenty of evidence of an influence campaign by Russia which was a tailwind for Trump. Is the Russia influence campaign not also a tailwind for Republicans in congress who ride Trump’s coattails? Look for Russian intel to continue to help takedown of dems. Along with “exoneration” 2020 will be a walk in the park for Trump, who can continue to benefit from Russian influencers without worry. The front loaded conclusions without the report details was done masterfully by William Barr allowing the “complete exoneration” falsehood to rule the day. When the details are released in dribs and drabs, the impact will be much less. Dark days indeed.
307
@99.9 You didn't need Mueller's report; you already knew the truth. To quote Paul Simon, "still a man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest."
71
It actually was a complete exoneration. The report left it up to the AG to decide on obstruction and the AG saw nothing there that could be prosecuted, as stated in the summary. It’s a sad reality that it should be case closed, but it won’t be.
4
@99.9
Actually, the stated conclusion of the Mueller report was attempted influence of the Trump campaign which was unsuccessful. So more like a "gut punch" to Russian provocateurs by Trump. You should be thankful for that, especially given all of those who have not punched back, including all of those you would otherwise protect from the level of investigation engaged against Trump and his family. Certainly no one could question the aggressive zealousness of the Special Prosecution Team in this investigation. The obstruction prosecutions and what went on to secure them further proves the point. Corsi and Caputo can also add to that indisputable conclusion. I welcome that level of investigation on all those in power over the last decade and those that current seek it.
3
What side of Donald Trump will we see going forward, the magnanimous and gracious leader of a divided nation that desperately needs healing?
Or a ruthless and vengeful victor bent on punishing those who dared to oppose him.
I'll bet on the latter.
469
@BMAR
Have you ever seen the former?
59
@BMAR The former has never existed.
45
This should not be over until we get to the bottom of who was involved in wasting all this precious time , government resources and god knows how much money on a bogus case. It would also be great to know who was already briefed on this outcome, since the democrats seem to know the outcome a few weeks ago with Rep Nadler conveniently starting new investigations.....since the old story line was ending and they needed new talking points moving forward.
6
Trump won in 2016. Just accept it and move on to 2020.
8
@Odin This isn't about who got elected in 2016. It is an investigation into whether the Trump campaign colluded with the Russians who know worked to help get him elected. Some of us care about whether the Russians are interfering in our democracy.
5
@Odin Oh, did he?
Democrats gifted Mr Trump his reelection by continually saying the Muller report would result in Trump going to jail.
Now that it's out and he won't be jailed he will use this whole thing to endlessly prove Democrats hate him and the basket of deplorables, this solidifying the base. Meanwhile the Democrats can't s come up with a candidate or platform.
Easy as pie, thanks to the Democrats own actions
5
@AutumnLeaf Except the Democrats never said that; we the people have, but the Party, no. There's still a report with 2 years worth of investigating, plus dozens of lawsuits and investigations to go.
7
@AutumnLeaf
almost two years to the election, a lot can happen until then too, we don't have a crystal ball to tell us.
2
@AutumnLeaf Most of the Democrats I know never thought this investigation would put Trump in jail. Not the collusion, anyway. It's the money laundering and tax fraud that will be the finale. That's being examined by the state of New York as we speak. Stay tuned!
4
The paragraph that gets under my craw is the one where Trump, with barely concealed fury, told reporters, “It’s a shame that our country had to go through this. To be honest, it’s a shame that your president has had to go through this.” He denigrated the investigation...as an “illegal takedown that failed” and said those responsible for it should face scrutiny."
Barr said "while this report does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him".
Why does Trump continuously criticize anything to do with this top-notch investigation into Russian tampering?
The investigation resulted in dozens of indictments for federal crimes and at least eight guilty pleas or convictions.
Manafort was found guilty on eight felony counts of financial crimes and a month later pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and obstruct justice.
Flynn pled guilty to making false statements to the FBI and as part of a December 2017 plea deal is required to be a cooperating witness in the investigations.
Guilty pleas were secured from Rick Gates, Alex van der Zwaan, Papadopoulos, Patten and Pinedo.
The investigation indicted 13 Russian citizens; three Russian entities; Konstantin Kilimnik; 12 members of Fancy Bear, the Russian GRU cyber espionage group responsible for the 2016 DNC email hacking; and longtime Trump advisor Roger Stone.
Trump has criticized people or groups related to the investigation over 1,000 times.
Why?
13
@Ed
Because it was a complete waste. That’s why.
@Greg A waste of what? Money? The investigation cost $25 million, but we've spent almost $100 million sending Trump on his weekend getaways. That seems more like a waste to me. A waste of time? Take a look at all the people paying fines and doing time because of what Mueller and his team found out. And these were Trump's circle.
4
@Ed WAAAA, oh poor me. Why did I have to go through this???
2
Trump has been lying about Mueller and this investigation for 2 years and about Obama for 12 years. Why would he stop now? Will he apologize for all of the lies he told about Mueller which put Mueller's life in danger? Nope.
8
A prominent criminal defense lawyer had a large mounted sailfish in his waiting room. The brass plaque under it didn't say its weight or where it was caught. Instead, it said "I also wouldn't be here if I had kept my big mouth shut."
Donald Trump, Don Jr., and Jared did not provide sworn testimony to Mueller. That is why the result we see occurred.
As any criminal defense lawyer will tell you, he or she has many clients who were not charged, but very few who were innocent.
10
The only thing this massive Muller probe proved thus far is that Barr is still a man of his word and that there were a lot of lying apparatchiks skulking around Trump's campaign. Republicans everywhere can now fully assert their pride and affection for Individual #1 and the Muller report. For now.
I find it hard to believe Mueller could completed his report without an interview with Trump. Seems a little odd to me. The principal target of the investigation and he isn’t interviewed. The republicans stick together no matter what for the common good of the party. Trump will win again in 2020 because having honour and integrity are qualities reserved for those on the receiving end to have a little bit of intelligence. Vulgarity, indecency, misogyny, prejudice, bigotry, pathological lying, bullying and incompetence are qualities many Americans admire.
8
At a moment of vindication and victory when he could for once finally act presidential, Donald Trump stayed true to form by rejecting Lincoln's compassion and magnanimity by declaring continued "malice to all" who oppose him. This is both the most depressing and frightening impact of the Mueller report--the unleashing of a true witch hunt by an angry autocrat who claims "vengeance is mine."
9
@Paul Wortman When you seek vengeance, dig two graves.....
@T.R.I.Yes, but will we all join him in the second grave?
Trump isn't the one who declared War, that was and still is the Democrats who cannot accept they lost in 2016. To ask for scrutiny into how our Intelligence apparatus and Justice System was misused by one political party to hurt another is not 'declaring war'. That would be like the United States striking back at Japan was the United States declaring war on Japan. Japan started our involvement in WW2 and the history books correctly record the sequence of events. Why you trying to rewrite history here?
3
Trump’s attack on Mueller and the investigation may well insure his reelection in 2020. For two years, the public has been fixated on Trump’s election and Russian collusion. The Democrats have gambled on the Russian scare, only to fail to produce a smoking gun. As for obstruction, it remains open, but unlikely to be pursued.
In his assault on the probe, Trump hopes to distract the public as well as embolden his base with questions about the length and cost of the Mueller’s inquiry. One estimate puts the study’s cost at $25 million. With a budget over $3.8 trillion, $25 million is chump chain. The cost of one F-22 Raptor is $334 million. You would need over 13 Mueller reviews to equal that.
However, Trump’s base has found its truncheon to use on their adversaries. GOP critics and fence sitters will fall into line as the presidential election hits up. With chants of no collusion and “complete exoneration,” the Democrats face almost certain defeat for the presidency, and perhaps lose control of the House.
Mueller’s investigation may well result in blowback to the detriment of Trump’s opponents.
30
@doughboy It wasn't the cost of the investigation that angers millions of people; it was the prospect that elites can install any president they want regardless of the vote. About the naked attempts to railroad Mueller and turn him into a coup against the voters of the United States, based on nothing. The United States went to war with Iraq based on nothing. Hillary Clinton could have faced the same type of coup and been run out. Her husband was impeached over a sexual dalliance with a consenting woman. She has endless foreign connections involving big money. Not that her domestic ties were legitimate. The sleazy, unbelievably arrogant methods of the NYT and their cabal have annoyed and angered the country. As outlandish as it "sounds," this was indeed a hoax and a witch hunt. That's where we are.
3
@rjs7777
Are you referring to :
Investigating Hillary for 25 years?
The multitude of convictions and indictments brought by Mueller?
A Presidential candidate asking our enemies for help?
Underhanded attacks on Clinton's "foreign connections"
Dog whistle "cabal" ?
Trump's "big money"?
Attack the justice department?
15
You incorrectly assume the general public supports the fiasco of the Trump administration or even likes him a human being. There is also the slowing domestic economy and the global contempt the US is now held in. When the best a sitting President can say is that an investigation did not find evidence he was an agent for an enemy state, it is hardly a solid platform to campaign on.
Trump will be voted out off office, and he may yet find himself facing criminal charges for the illegal activity of which there has been evidence, such as tax evasion and other fraud.
3
Must fell great to be “exonerated” while the world knows you play fast and loose with the law and you bully everyone who you come in contact with - winner at evasion, loser at life.
7
Trump may have been quiet this past weekend, but, he will continue to fracture the country with his sense of vengeance rather than any attempt to unite. His tweets may be much more toxic in his belief he can act without consequences.
And his adult children, and Jared, will continue to work behind the scenes to further their personal interests in their "protected and entitled" station in the White House presumably unfettered.
6
It’s too bad Yogi Berra isn’t around to give us some words of wisdom.
Is this over? I don’t think so. District and state courts haven’t had their say yet.
So we’ve come to a fork in the road and we’re going to take it. It ain’t over ‘til it’s over.
Be prepared to suffer during the interim.
4
Let us not be too hasty to feel either depression or exaltation over this report. The genuine collusion has been political, between the would-be dictator and the former do-nothing Congress to crush the working and elderly poor and to enrich the further the plutocrats, for whom the answer to the question "How much is enough" is always "a little bit more." That is the genuine overarching issue with this administration, whether the subject is income inequality and failure of wages to keep up with expenses and inflation, expansion of ability to afford health care and prescription drugs, or the basic right to clean air and potable water. This is why the Democratic candidates must campaign, not on the pathetic narcissist's inevitable boasting but on the very real pocketbook needs of the millions. They must not be distracted by this episode.
351
@FactionOfOne
Wrong. We who support the President are not plutocrats. We are working class blue collar types surrounded by upper class democrats who just don’t get it.
7
@BobG
After this colossal miss, it's safe to say they know little about these things. Their animus and hubris has blinded them once again.
4
@BobG and yet you fail to see the future damage he has inflicted
46
37 indictments of people in the vicinity of donald is hardly a failure, and New York courts will find plenty more. This is just the beginning.
15
If your President had the reputation for truth telling as that of Cato from ancient Rome or of your own Mr. Lincoln, there would have been no need for this investigation. Sadly quite the opposite is true, which leaves the state of your nation in peril.
6
trumps public taunting may be what does him in. Oh, and I'd like to see the full report please.
6
Despite ALL the best advice from his advisers to move on, Trump will reject them and revert to form: To find any and every way to wreak vengeance and vindictive upon anyone and everyone who DARED question him, who DARED not to bend the knee to him! There is a meaness and sadism to Trump:
When he fired Comey, he didn't do it like a "mensch" and call him into his office, or even phone him--Comey found out while he was giving a talk in California and it came over the TV news. Trump announced it before he told Comey. In true Trumpian petty vindictiveness, he was annoyed that Comey was allowed to fly on his assigned govt jet. Trump wanted him STRANDED in California.
Andrew McCabe was fired on a Friday 2 days before retirement, losing a large portion of his pension. That was a deliberate, public attempt to humiliate and punish McCabe--again, petty Trumpian vindictiveness. Even Nixon would have let the retirement proceed!
Then there's John McCain, 7 months dead, repeatedly slandered by Trump, with no regard for his family, still mourning him, because it just sticks in his craw that McCain was respected and liked universally, and only 36% of the country "adores" Trump. For Trump, the mean-spirited, McCain will never be dead enough.
So expect him to ignore all advice and go after his tormentors, Nadler, Schumer, Pelosi, Schiff, Warner, Cummings, the NYTimes, the WaPo, MSNBC, CNN, the SNDY, Latisha James (NYS AG), and everyone else. He cannot help himself, how he is made.
28
Naive of so many of us to think that the Mafia was long gone.
6
Even when an investigation, which he claimed for nearly two years was a witch hunt, ends (prematurely?) in his favor this president continues to attack the rule of law. This may be your greatest crime, President Trump. But I'm sure there are others. And they will be found out, whether your loyalist A.G. Barr releases the full Mueller report, or not. Maybe Putin will finally figure out that your promises to him are empty and then what will he say? So, please, keep up your retaliation chatter. You are your own worst enemy.
6
They didn't get the witch this time but alot of his familars went to jail.
15
@Seabrook
A lot huh? Two old men and one young guy, the young guy in and out already isn't he? So revel in the harm you have inflicted on a few old white, formerly rich guys that is what partisans do when they win a partisan political fight. They count the bodies and celebrate.
Puffed up with hubris and vindictiveness, our "dear leader" will "go after his enemies" -- breaking laws. And this behavior will get him into new trouble.
14
trump once again proves his unsuitability for office for calling this investigation "illegal." He can never stop his big trap from assaulting America.
12
This seals Trumps win in 2020. He will play the democrats want open borders and socialism card and the majority of Americans will buy it. I was hoping Mueller would find something to impeach him on but it looks like the Mueller report didn’t reveal anything we didn’t already know. Millions of dollars spent on what we could of got on Twitter. Complete and total waste of time but not for the republicans who will come out of this stronger and more united than ever while the democrats will look like fools.
1
@James
Yes and in your own country what is your Government doing right now? Shutting Down and Investigation aren't they? Won't even let the central witness speak? Why? If there is nothing to hide why fear an investigation? If we can do it here, surely virtuous Canada will at least allow a witness to speak to the totality of events right?
1
Before you escalate your battle against the Democrats, remember this...
It was your administration that investigated you.
It was your 'unwise' decision to fire Comey, that initiated that investigation.
The individuals that you surrounded yourself admitted to or were found guilty of various crimes that clearly were to your benefit. The fact that an investigator could not find the "smoking gun" that he believed was necessary to unite the Senate to act does not "exonerate" you from clearly unethical behavior.
But most importantly, if you intend to now commit yourself to running this country, you need to remember that you represent all 315 million Americans, not just the 61 million that voted for you. No matter what race, creed, or religion, we are all your constituents.
If you continue to ignore us, there will be consequences at the ballot box.
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@Wesley Brooks
Bring it.
@Wesley Brooks There you go again using logic and reasoning. That won't work with the GOP. Sad.
9
"Claiming vindication" indeed. Trump is claiming vindictiveness and now we will all see the ugly fascist dictator emerge from beneath the irrational exterior.
25
Mafia Don will still be taken down by the criminal investigations swirling around him. Good luck, Mr. President. Enjoy your hollow victory while you can. Your troubles are just beginning. You and your criminal family will get exactly what you deserve.
24
@Mark Thank you Mark. I think your words will prove the words of my sainted mother, "what goes around comes around, but sometimes it takes a lifetime."
Bickering over the word, "exoneration", is a fool's errand. There were no charges brought. That's enough to exonerate someone in most Americans' minds.
Clinging to the report as though it contains some secret charges is also a fool's errand. How many more straws will be grasped before democrats regain their senses?
1
"At 3 p.m., Mr. Barr’s chief of staff, Brian Rabbitt, called one of the White House lawyers, Emmett T. Flood, and read him the letter that Mr. Barr PLANNED to send to the chairmen and ranking members of the House and Senate Judiciary committees."
So Flood, at least, had an opportunity to interact with Barr over the draft of the 'Principal Conclusions' Barr was intending to release to Congress. Sounds like the Executive has been organizing to defend itself and its truth-challenged 'BOSS' in part through the wording of Barr's 4-page release. I hope Nadler and Schiff are aware of this information and use it well when they call members of the Executive to appear before their Committees and when they contribute advice for participants in the 2020 presidential race.
4
Now he can collude with impugnity having been found (he will say) more honest than Jesus and George Washington.
13
Why wasn't The helicopter engines running? Normally the are running so it is difficult to hear what he is saying. Is this a clear lie he is telling?
3
Its curious that Trump used the phrase "an illegal takedown." This shows his mind thinks in wrestling terms. His words reflect this in another way. He is constantly bobbing and weaving with true and false statements, frames coming into and out of focus. He is very hard to hit or quote later. Like a sparing partner with a champ one can be left dazed and confused.
The catch with a boxer or wrestler president is that the truth, science, sound indeductive, and deductive reasoning are also important and really of vital importance. His bobbing and weaving really was the culprit in forcing all these investigations -- the Muellar one included.
We are so accustomed to quality repartee and logic from presidents, our dazed and confused states require investigations.
Finally, he is still a wrestler or boxer and not a president, so it is more of the same cycle: bobbing and weaving with words leading to dazed and confused citizens (foreign countries) leading to more investigations: stagnation of solving real problems -- more pointless reality show episodes. I good name for the soap opera: while the world heats!
3
I don't blame Trump one bit. He was the target of an investigation initiated by political operatives. I certainly hope the origins of the Mueller investigation are now fully investigated.
Obama cleverly made Trump the scapegoat for Russian interference. The only problem is those charges have fallen apart, and he is now exposed as the one who actually had full responsibility for preventing it.
It appears Obama and entrenched bureaucrats were too busily trying to thwart Trump to thwart the Russians.
2
@AACNY The origins of the Mueller investigation was the firing of Comey by Donald Trump.
Al Capone was imprisoned for income tax evasion. This doesn't mean he was exonerated of his many other crimes, only that there wasn't sufficient hard evidence to convict him. Trump and his minions obviously encouraged Russian interference in the election. That Mueller didn't find hard evidence of collusion only demonstrates that the Putin is crafty enough to game the system, something that Trump built his entire career on.
23
So what about the 16 Trump campaign officials who had over 100 contacts with Russians during the campaign, then lied about them? What was that about, and why all the lying? We're really going to end this with no explanation? I mean, maybe there's a benign explanation. But I would like to know what it is. Trumpers -- you're really not even curious? To some of us it still looks really bad. I thought that the point of the investigation was to put the questions to rest.
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It's interesting that Mr. Trump is now reportedly concerned about what the Department of Justice, under Mr. Barr, will choose to share with fellow citizens.
It leads one to suspect that there's much to learn from the documents generated by special counsel, and that a two-day reading of a basic letter outlining the investigation doesn't mean that further actions will not be taken.
In short, he worries that Mr. Barr will not provide him with the cover he thinks he needs; and that Congress, and other layers of the justice systems will do their jobs.
13
If the Democrats want the American People's support and votes they need to thoroughly investigate all accusations regardless of what Barr decided to release. Remember that the SDNY has ongoing investigations that were handed to them by Mueller. First Trump called this a witch hunt, now he calls this an illegal takedown that failed, yet one question must be asked, "who precipitated naming a Special Counsel?" Hillary? The Dem's? It was Trump's actions. If his supporters deny that then they are Mushrooms. This is far from over, oversight is oversight and the American People are entitled to see the Mueller Report in its entirety without any redactions. Why? Simply because we paid for it and need to know what kind of sociopath is in the WH.
23
The door has now been flung open for the Trump administration to continue and expand it's cruel and heartless stripping of all social and personal norms in the White House.
A triumphant Trump is likely to be energized and intent on punishing those he sees as enemies. He will lash out. It's how he works. I'd look for this rally later this week to sink to new lows and to incite even more rancor and hate across our nation.
There are very dark days ahead.
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It's a shame all right.. that we have such a clueless president. The investigation is a bright light on our system actually working.
12
After Trump has spent 2 years attacking Mueller, is it any wonder that the results have not changed anyones view? If the results were negative it would not have changed the view of his voters, either.
So what do we know that we did not know 2 years ago. We know that Trump was negotiating for a Moscow Tower and then lied to the public about it. We know that the tower deal included the requirement for sanctions to be dropped. Did the Trump team understand this?
We know in the tower meeting Jr was too ignorant to understand what the discussion of adoptions was about. That ignorance is probably what saved him, because he certainly wanted to get Russian dirt on Hillary.
Innocent or feckless? The overwhelming evidence seems to be feckless. If there was not intent for obstruction of justice, the excuse must just be that Trump is rather dim bulb in that category, also.
16
"No cloud over my corruption so unleash thunder and lightning on all critics"
2
He will now be free to destroy our society.
35
Let Mr. Trump strut and crow all he wants to. After all, it's what he's wired to do. He enjoys making up his own reality and winkling others who support him into joining in his games of "let's pretend."
All the shoes in the ongoing investigations have not yet dropped. We have not seen the full Mueller Report yet and, when we do, the conclusions of other legal experts -- including those who have political influence and the power to bring charges -- may well differ from those written by the Attorney General in his letter. It's much too early, Mr. Trump, for you to do your 'happy' dance.
16
Unless this report is made fully public then NOTHING is settled. I feel like I'm living in crazy town. The very fact Barr is even AG is itself the very product of obstruction. There was never any good reason given for Sessions dismissal. So we all just let Trump pick one obvious toady and plant and when he was too obvious and corrupt then they shoved the guy in who seems to confuse a president with a king. Nothing will ever be settled until the report is made public and Mueller testifies before Congress. Shame on us if there is not riots in the streets if we let this corrupt administration do this.
59
Totally agree that until the report is made public this settles nothing. What I find strange is Barr has stated that the AG department has a policy that you can’t indict a sitting president and yet after the Mueller report he says there isn’t enough evidence to indict the president. He should keep his mouth shut and only speak on subjects he has a say in. Crazy town that’s for sure.
8
@Blackcat66
Clearly you are hoping for something that doesn't exist to appear in that report. Mystery criminal charges, perhaps? Or do you think something slipped by Mueler that he didn't mention?
1
@Blackcat66
And if the report is released and Mueller testifies it will be some other hill to crest before its settled. We know this game and it is tiresome but you won't stop will you? Just keep marching right off that cliff in 2020.
No collusion with Russia does not lessen the sleaze factor that is so central to Trump, nor the outrageous conflicts of interest that he brings to the office (along with Jared and Ivanka). No way he's not going down in flames eventually.
40
@MG
At least we had an investigation here. Your Mr. Housefather is making sure the Liberals shut it down in Canada though huh? No, JWR, you cannot finish your testimony, even if 75% of Canadians want you to. Just deflect to Trump all will be well in Virtuous Liberal Land.
@MG
I agree, but eventually is too long to wait.
Its unfortunate that this will give him ammunition to try to convince his base that he deserves a second term.
If only the democrats play as dirty and ruthless as the republicans!
8
As long as the GOP continues to fail to hold POTUS responsible for following the Constitution, our democracy will continue to crumble under the weight of #45's malfeasance.
61
Now the President can get back to robbing the poor and giving to the rich! Of course, he never really stopped.
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“...those responsible for it should face scrutiny.“
Donald, we the people are responsible for this investigation. We the people demanded that our representatives probe every aspect of your foul behavior and hold you accountable for your fraud, money laundering, general corruption, and obstruction of justice. Scrutinize us all you want, but we are not some small minority cowering in a corner. We will never let you get away with this, the greatest con of all time, and we will never see yours as anything other than an illegitimate presidency.
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@Longfellow Lives
You don't chose a leader to investigate for this past action , but what he can do for the nation to make it strong .
2
@Longfellow Lives
Thank you for your posting. It is a bright spot in a dark day, indeed.
1
Mr. Trump didn’t say his enemies should “face scrutiny”, he said they “should be looked at”.
Scrutiny is a big word.
12
I never heard or read anything other than praise and respect for mueller. I think his report has credibility because of this.
As everyone says it is not an exoneration of Trump regarding the interference but neither is it an “indictment”. If mueller thought a personal interview with trump would have been productive I doubt he would have completed the report without pursuing this further than he did. There was however a finding of no collision.
There are multiple ongoing criminal investigations. This was not that. It was a specifically tailored inquiry that spawned many others.
trump is as foul, base and venal as they come. But as they say “give the devil his due.” He was affirmatively found not to have colluded and, as someone reminiscent of the shell of a human being, entitled to feel vindicated.
The appropriate solution within our system is 2020. Once again an election will be the Democrats to lose. Let’s see what they come up with. If they can’t come up with both an acceptable candidate and a platform that appeals to independents and moderates we will have four more years of a president who has no concerns about reelection.
6
He can enjoy this moment of "victory" all he wants but a lot of material has come up which may keep him busy in the courts once his presidency is over.
17
@Bob: His 'presidency' will never be over. He's America's first dictator. I have no doubt.
1
It's a shame that government treats many factually innocent persons like DONALD J. TRUMP the way it does, since events of 9/11/2001. All war and no peace diminishes America's health, wealth and reputation.
5
The fact that so many of the Presidents cronies were indicted and the President is celebrating like a mobster that beat the rap says it all.
32
The Left hangs on to the statement that mueller did not exonerate him from obstruction of justice. But he did not accuse him either. How could he? Why would anyone obstruct justice if he did not do anything wrong ???
6
If he impeded the investigation, which he has almost admitted he did, he obstructed justice.
23
@DrT
That last question lingers, because we have watched trump obstruct justice... by firing Comey, Sessions, by attacking the media, the FBI, the DOJ... by continuing his attack on the US Govt today by calling the investigation illegal. So why? I'm not surprised he wasn't colluding with the Russians, but I'd be a fool to think he doesn't have other things he's hiding. Otherwise, he'd have been cooperating all along.
7
@Tristan T
By firing Mueller...and tweeting? No.
1
It was truly a great day for the President and America. While there is little that can compare to election eve coverage of the 2016 race, this is close.
Oh sure, the hysterics will continue, as we're dealing with Democrats. But we've dodged the best the Establishment has - and this vindicates all of us who supported and voted for this President.
9
@Arthur Taylor
Yes, it was reminiscent of the early AM election result coverage. It's hard to understand how they can continue to get it so wrong about Trump. Bodes extremely well for his re-election chances.
1
@Arthur Taylor
It's a mystery to me how the day the president of the United States attacks our own system of government by calling a legitimate investigation illegal can be a great day in America for you. He just attacked the foundations of the American system with his statement. This is why 60% of us don't like or trust him.
34
@Arthur Taylor Dodged? What do you mean dodged? There are over 30 indictments, numerous prison sentences and the corruption surrounding trump still stinks. Oh sure you will ignore those in favor of a president who has lied to you over and over again. That's okay with you because a lying president is better than a carousing, thief I guess.
25
Remember when President Obama cleared the air about his birth certificate? The one that proved Donald Trump was wrong about the whole birth and citizen issue? (Did Trump think Black people could not possibly be US citizens?). Anyhow, Obama walked away from the podium and it was the end of the issue. There’s class.
Donald Trump is going to use “no collusion” in every sentence he speaks for the next two years. Watch and see. He’ll cling onto it like a new piece of his body.
172
@MIMA Obama is/was classy. No one with the last name Trump will ever be described as classy. At least never by any honest person.
31
The media and the House MUST concentrate on the facts of Russian intervention in our elections. That threatens our democracy as much or more than the mendacity and corruption of this president.
He will continue to distract us and distort everything to seek re-election in order to avoid federal and state prosecution for his clan's numerous other wrongdoings and to continue making money off the prestige and power of the White House.
Stay focused, people!
22
@awcg
I’m sorry you feel the way you do.
@awcg
No.
We already see that we can count on Trump not to be gracious and magnanimous in victory.
23
“... Mr. Barr’s summary quoted from Mr. Mueller’s report that “while this report does not conclude that the president committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him.”
So... what are we left with here? Barr deciding on his own. Talk about vague and open to interpretation.
29
Donald Trump was probably just a surprised at the results of the Mueller investigation as he was at the 2016 election results.
239
@Bill bartelt
That's what I thought, He acted like much worst news was coming, he acted as guilty as sin.
62
@Bill bartelt Very thoughtful comment. I think your point reflects amazing clarity.
19
Ok, Mueller investigation over.....can this so-called president turn his attention to making sure that our election system is protected from foreign influence? And maybe address infrastructure? Please?
24
@MB
Are you suggesting he tell Putin to 'knock it off'? That's how Obama 'turned his attention ' to it. So I will tell Putin for him ok?
Hey, you, yeah you , PUTIN, Knock it Off!!
I even used two exclamation marks so that should do it.
It is now a good time to get back to the business of how to strengthen USA and improve the prosperity and well-being of all American citizens. Forget Russian collusion and let us focus on infrastructure investments, environment, education, trade, reducing war spend, NATO, North Korea, and all other topics that are directly relevant to American citizens' interests that the government and congress need to focus on instead of spending additional years on these investigations. If it was a democratic president and Republicans did the same, I would be protesting equally vehemently against the same.
12
@Matt
Very well said.Two bad years in US history . People should know how to punish Democrats .
1
@arish sahani For indictments of criminals? That would be weird.
9
I understand the need for and support the investigation, but have not been concerned much with what it found. There is an election in 19 months, after all. An impeachable offense, in my view, would be for President not to implement our country's commitment under the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change. Not doing that, and the subsequent worldwide consequences, will, scientists say, result in a near extinction of a species - our own - equivalent to a world-wide nuclear war.
37
@Benjamin Ochshorn
Thanks for laying it on the line. That's the most important thing any of us can be paying attention to, down to every action we take regarding our own energy use.
4
@Benjamin Ochshorn
Please list the Countries that are actually MEETING their commitments, as opposed to 'implementing' them. All of the ones that actually met them or will meet them this year?
Once again Trump exhibits total incomprehension of -- and contempt for -- the rule of law. At a point when it appears that a thorough investigation concluded that there was not a conspiracy between his campaign and Russia, Trump impugns the investigation. This in light of the fact that on national tv he said he hoped Russia would dig up dirt on his opponent, and the subsequent conviction of his swamp-dwelling campaign manager. Trump is not exonerated -- literally -- and neither is he accused. But wherever the truth lies, Trump and his collaborators seem determined to keep the report itself a secret. We are told to accept a 4-page summary by his man -- Barr -- in its place. Phooey!
144
If Democrats think that justice won't be served until Trump is in jail, then you might as well hand Trump his second term right now. Most of the country has had enough. If Mueller's two year investigation doesn't satisfy because the conclusion was not the outcome they wanted, and Congress continues to pursue him, then this will be a witch hunt. It's time to MoveOn, to use a liberal organization name, even if it means MSNBC and CNN will have to come up with alternative programming.
35
@Pragmatist In CT
Agreed! But since the report is apparently in his favor, what would be the problem in releasing it?
Is the strategy so intricate...would withholding the report "fan the flames?" and ultimately make the Democrats look ridiculous?
And did that happen with the Clinton emails and Benghazi campaigns (Trump still talking about these, now an then...)
??? It all makes me sick, and it's all a big diversion from the issues that we should all be dealing with.
13
@Pragmatist In CT
Democrats are creating new charges by the day. Rep. Nadler charged a cover up before anything had even been released. Now it's the bickering over a word, "exoneration" despite the lack of charges. And a demand for full disclosure of all evidence. Seriously? What next?
Democratic voters have to decide whether they've had enough. If so, they need to tell their elected officials to move on.
Keep in mind that the loudest cohort abhors Trump and will do anything to indulge its animus. In other words, it's time for rational democrats to take back the keys.
@Pragmatist In CT.
We need laws to punish people for these fake cases and news .
Can someone possibly explain why it took so long for Mueller to come up with nothing. I loath Trump but this exoneration is the end any political restraint. God help us.
176
@John Safay The only person who knows that is Mueller. All I know is that for such a long investigation to come up with not much of anything is more grist for the MAGA Trump camp. Those upcoming rallies are going to be off the hook. The Democratic party has it's work cut out.
57
@John Safay
I can! It takes time to do the job correctly. Thirty four indictments and up to four and counting convictions is not nothing. There is also the continuing investigations in other parts of the country. This is just the end of the beginning.
134
@John Safay He didn't come up with nothing. He passed off other investigations to jurisdictions that Trump can't issue pardons for, a smart move. There was probably a lot more solid evidence that Trump has been laundering money for Russia than that he knowingly "colluded" to alter an election.
122